Riding the Outrider: New Buses Connecting Craig and Denver
News Release
CRAIG — Following a nearly three-month wait, the Colorado Department of Transportation’s Bustang Outrider™ now is serving passengers traveling between northwestern Colorado and Denver.
The route, connecting Craig and Denver via U.S. 40 and Interstate 70, began service on Jan. 1, 2021. “We wanted to get this line up and running through northwestern Colorado as soon as possible so we decided it was best to partner with Greyhound and have them use their buses on an interim basis while we focused on getting our new Outrider coaches ready for service,” said Mike Timlin, interim director of the Colorado Department of Transportation’s Division of Transit and Rail. “Passengers are now boarding our black and teal buses.”
In addition to Craig, regularly scheduled stops include Hayden, Steamboat Springs, Kremmling, Hot Sulphur Springs, Granby, Tabernash, Fraser, Winter Park, Idaho Springs, the Denver Federal Center and Union Station.
Along with scheduled stops, the route includes a number of flag stops, places where the bus stops only when a passenger is waiting for, or requests to be dropped off at, a designated location (see sign below). Flag stops are located in Milner, at the CO 14 junction (Muddy Pass), Parshall, and Empire. Future stops will be added if the ridership potential is deemed viable.
The route operates seven days a week, including holidays. Fares are priced at 17 cents per mile:
- Craig-Hayden ($3)
- Craig-Union Station ($34)
- Steamboat Springs-Union Station ($27)
- Granby-Union Station ($13)
Tickets are half price for those 65 years and older, 11 years and younger or for the disabled. Additional information on purchasing tickets for all stops is available at: www.ridebustang.com.
Outrider coaches are equipped with a restroom, bike racks, free WiFi (where available), power outlets and USB ports. Each Outrider coach seats 38 and is handicap accessible. During COVID restrictions, each bus is limited to 19 passengers. Other precautions include, but are not limited to: daily enhanced cleaning and sanitizing on all buses, required face masks for drivers and passengers, supplied face masks (for personal use), latex gloves and personal hand sanitizers on all buses, and blocked seats onboard to ensure proper social distancing.
Barring impacts due to the pandemic or other circumstances, three additional Outrider routes are scheduled to begin service in 2021 – Telluride-Grand Junction, Sterling-Greeley & Denver, and Trinidad-Pueblo. Current Outrider routes include Gunnison-Denver, Alamosa-Pueblo, Lamar-Colorado Springs and Durango-Grand Junction.
