Not to be a stick in the mud, but how does RTD know there are only 41 riders boarding a line per hour?  Do they all of the sudden have counters on the train?  It is kind of hard to imagine only 41 people per hour on the entire line?  If so, then one could only say that the stupidity of building that line cannot be imagined.  Meanwhile, with all of the passes, discounts, and fare options, it would be very hard to say if the 41 riders per hour was subsistence ridership or not.  I don't buy any of this, and in any public transit system, more profitable lines always subsidize less profitable ones.  As most of the lines in this system go through downtown, 100 people could be riding per hour on the first 4 stops, and some staying on for the full commute.  RTD board members have to be smarter than this.  They need to switch entirely to smart cards that charge for distance, decrease the cost for a short trip (4 stops in total distance) to $1.25, and then watch what happens.  As gas prices ...