Front Range Express

F0703, one of 19 2007 Gillig BRT's purchased in 2007.

Front Range Express (FREX - stylized frex) was a commuter bus service operating between the cities of Colorado Springs, Denver, Greenwood Village, Monument and Castle Rock in Colorado, USA. FREX operated on Interstate 25 except when exiting to make stops at each city. FREX served the southern portion of the Colorado Front Range and was operated by Veolia Transport. It was a part of Mountain Metropolitan Transit, which serves the Colorado Springs and El Paso County areas. In 2005, annual ridership was 118,389 and daily ridership was 464.

In 2007, nineteen Gillig BRT suburban buses were bought. Before 2007, FREX used many different models of buses including the GMC RTS, MCI 102-C3, MCI 102-D3, MCI 102-DL3 and NovaBus RTS WFD suburban. However, the older buses were prone to breaking down. To provide a more efficient service, standard Mountain Metropolitan Transit buses were used from December 2006 until the new Gillig BRT suburban buses entered service in mid-2007.

FREX buses included amenities such as free Wi-Fi available to passengers throughout the route.

Due to the lack of funding, FREX faced the likelihood of being eliminated after February 12, 2010. As a last resort, FREX put up for sale nine out of the nineteen Gillig BRT suburban buses. The first two attempts to sell the buses failed. On February 8, a successful bid of $1.44 million, an average of $160,000 per bus, was made by York County Transportation Authority in Pennsylvania. These funds enabled FREX to continue for the remainder of 2010 with a reduced service, which did not include stops at Castle Rock.

With the budget being higher than expected for 2011, FREX service continued through 2011 and 2012 and was discontinued on August 31, 2012.

Service along the Front Range

The FREX bus service made many stops along the Front Range, including many in the Denver metropolitan area. The list below show stops, ordered from south to north.

• Colorado Springs
  • Tejon Park and Ride
  • Woodmen Park and Ride
• Monument Park and Ride
• Castle Rock - Outlet Mall Park & Ride (Discontinued in 2009)
• Greenwood Village - Arapahoe at Village Center Park-n-Ride (Gate H)
• Denver
  • Northbound
    • Lincoln & Virginia
    • Lincoln & 7th
    • Lincoln & Colfax
    • 18th & California (Light Rail transfer)
    • 18 & Champa
    • 18th & Arapahoe
    • 18th & Larimer
    • Blake St. (Mid-block between 17th & 16th St.’s) (Market St. Station and Union Station transfer)
    • Elitch Gardens – Little Raven St. off 15th
  • Southbound
    • Elitch Gardens – Little Raven St. off 15th
    • Market & 16th (Market St. Station and Union Station transfer)
    • 19th & Market
    • 19th & Arapahoe (Greyhound bus station transfer)
    • 19th & Stout (Light Rail transfer)
    • Broadway & Court Pl.
    • Broadway & 14th Ave.
    • Broadway & Speer
    • Broadway & Alameda

External links

• Front Range Express