Sustainable Transportation in Golden

Looking for ways to get around Golden and Denver sustainably? Check out our links below.

Biking

Students can bring their own bike or rent a bike from the Outdoor Recreation Center. The Mines campus, albeit hilly, is a bicycle-accessible campus with infrastructure to support the safe use of bicycles! Before cycling to and from campus, please consult the Mines Bicycle Safety page for information on “rules of the road,” proper bike parking, and how to register your bicycle on campus. Registering your bicycle is not necessary to ride on campus. But, it is encouraged, as it will help to prevent the successful theft of your bike.

Golden is considered a “Bicycle Friendly Community,” and has several bike paths and lanes which have earned it that title. Golden also has a “bike library’ that allows you to check out bikes to ride along the river walk. For more information visit Bicycling in Golden. and Bike Golden!

Personal Transportation

Mines has environmentally-friendly modes of transportation for students, staff, and faculty that commute, including electric vehicle charging stations on campus.

Electric Vehicles – Mines now has more than 10 electrical vehicle charging stations on campus, many of them dual port for multiple car charging. Areas with several charging stations include the lower level McNeil Hall parking garage; Jackson Street residence hall, CTLM lot, and Ford street lot. For more information, download the Parking Services guide that includes fees for EVs.

For additional Golden locations visit the Alternative Fuels Data Center.

Car Share – Mines is working with Xcel Energy and Colorado Car Share on an electric vehicle car share program for students. We will provide more details soon.

Carpooling – Students can also share the cost of a parking pass and carpool to campus. Only one vehicle in the pass group can be parked on campus at a time. Strict fines are applied to students who share a carpool parking pass and bring multiple vehicles to campus. A variety of carpooling apps are available for students to find rides including Way To Go and WazeMiles2Share.com is another app. Mines does not endorse any app and is only making this information available as a courtesy.

Important note regarding insurance: Carpooling and ridesharing may require additional insurance coverage, and you may want to explore your options for liability protection with your insurance carrier. Some insurance policies exclude coverage for what is referred to as “ride for hire” situations. If your carpooling arrangement involves accepting money from some passengers, for gas or otherwise, request written confirmation from your auto insurance company that this practice will not affect your coverage.

Public Transportation - RTD LIGHTRAIL OR BUS

(TO AND FROM CAMPUS:

Students and staff that live in Golden can take advantage of the Ore Cart Shuttle, a FREE transit shuttle connecting the Colorado School of Mines campus, downtown Golden and beyond. More details.

For students and staff that live outside Golden: Students receive a RTD College Pass from Student Life and Employees receive an Eco-Pass from Parking Services. The Ore-Cart shuttle picks up passengers at the Jeffco Government Center Station (Golden RTD Lightrail station) and the G-Line station.

TO AND FROM AIRPORT:

From the airport: Students and visitors can take the A-Line RTD Light Rail train from the airport to Union Station. From Union Station, walk about 1 block to the RTD Lightrail trains and catch the W Line to Jeffco Government Center Station (W Line). Travelers will need to catch shuttle, bike, or find other transportation to the campus from the Light Rail Station. The station is about 2 miles from campus.

Shuttle from Jeffco Government Center Station (W Line) – FLEXRIDE  City of Golden’s Flexride website.  FLEXRIDE Buses to Mines park at the A Gate. Train ticket good for buses and shuttles.

To the airport: Students can take the W Line at Jeffco Government Station to Union Station and from Union Station take the A-Line (Track 1) directly to the airport. The train drops off and picks up right below the ticket counter at the airport. Travelers should use caution at night.

Shuttle to Train Station: Starting July 5, 2023, the Ore Cart shuttle provides transportation services to the Jeffco Government Center Station and Golden Community Monday through Friday and limited service on Saturday. For more information, visit mines.edu/Transit.

Tickets: RTD Mobile Ticket App

Route Planning: RTD Trip Planner

Carbon Offsets

For individuals or clubs on campus hoping to offset their carbon emissions, Mines Sustainability recommends purchasing carbon offset, renewable energy credits, and/or water restoration certificates from Terrapass.

For those wanting to offset carbon emissions from their vehicles, you can sign up for the Colorado Carbon Fund.