The design-build team of Saunders Construction and Stantec announced it is supporting the Roaring Fork Transportation Authority (RFTA) with the expansion of its Glenwood Springs Maintenance Facility (GMF), located in Glenwood Springs, Colo.

The expansion project will address operational deficiencies and accommodate forecasted growth in population and ridership demand, while facilitating the agency’s transition to zero-emission buses (ZEBs), according to the news release.

RFTA serves Glenwood Springs, Aspen, Snowmass Village, Pitkin County, Basalt, Eagle County, Carbondale, and New Castle.

“In partnership with Saunders Construction and RFTA, we are incredibly excited to help deliver the GMF expansion project,” said Merlin Maley, Stantec project principal. “The project is critical to ensuring RFTA is able to continue safely and reliably meeting the transit needs of the three counties it serves, while creating greater connectivity, reducing fossil fuel emissions, and increasing RFTA’s operational efficiencies.”

The GMF was built in 2002 and designed as a satellite facility to store and maintain 34 buses. Now, RFTA operates approximately 44 buses from the facility daily.

This $42 million project includes indoor heated bus storag and an operations facility. 

Future phases will include expanding indoor heated bus storage to 60 buses, new site retaining walls, four battery electric bus chargers, and a fuel and wash lane expansion.

“Saunders Construction is proud to partner with RFTA on the new GMF project. As a Colorado company, we are excited to be a part of this project, which will greatly improve the reliability and efficiency of RFTA’s operations,” said Tom Alford, SVP at Saunders Construction. “Working as a design-build team with Stantec, we’ve been able to provide RFTA and the GMF expansion project with exceptional design solutions, backed by Stantec’s tremendous expertise in bus transit.”

The project is expected to break ground in June 2022, with an estimated completion date of early 2024.