If an RTD bus hit you, you probably have a claim. But two questions decide how that claim works, and you need answers to both early: who actually employed the driver, and whether written notice went out within 182 days. Get either one wrong and a strong case can die before it starts.
I've sued RTD more than once. I've had a case where a bus drove straight through a right-turn-only lane marking and hit someone, and cases where passengers were hurt because the bus hit another vehicle or stopped abruptly. I've also handled a bus case against one of RTD's private contractors. These cases look simple from the outside: a 40-foot vehicle, a person who got hurt. But they run on rules that don't apply to an ordinary car crash. RTD is a government entity, so the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act controls most of the case. Except when it doesn't, because a big share of the buses with RTD painted on the side aren't driven by RTD employees at all.
Can You Sue RTD After a Bus Crash?
Yes. RTD is a public entity, so it starts out immune from most injury claims under the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act (CGIA). But the CGIA waives that immunity for injuries caused by a public employee driving a vehicle the public entity owns or leases, in the course of the job (C.R.S. § 24-10-106(1)(a)). An RTD driver running a route in an RTD bus fits that exception.
The waiver comes with strings attached: a 182-day written notice requirement, a cap on damages, and no punitive damages. Most of the strategy in an RTD case lives in those strings.
Was the Driver Actually Working for RTD?
Often, no. RTD has contracted out part of its bus service to private companies for decades. For years the contractors were First Transit and Transdev, and Transdev bought First Transit in 2023. Colorado law lets RTD contract out up to 58% of its vehicle service (C.R.S. § 32-9-119.5), and RTD's own reports have put the contracted share of fixed-route bus service around 45%. From the sidewalk, you can't tell the difference. Same paint, same logo, same route numbers.
That difference changes the whole case. In Henisse v. First Transit, Inc. (Colo. 2011), a First Transit driver was driving an RTD-owned bus on an RTD route when he hit the plaintiff's car. The company argued it was protected by the CGIA damages cap. The Colorado Supreme Court disagreed. The CGIA's definition of a public employee excludes independent contractors, so the contractor's driver wasn't a public employee, and neither he nor his employer got the cap.
So when a contractor's driver causes the crash, the claim generally runs against the contractor and its driver like a claim against any other company: no CGIA cap, no CGIA notice requirement for those defendants, and the ordinary rules on damages.
How I handle it: I send the 182-day notice to RTD in every bus case anyway. Early on, you usually don't know for certain who employed the driver, and a notice letter costs nothing compared to losing a claim against RTD because you guessed wrong. But the notice isn't the hard part. Naming the right defendant is. Sue only RTD when the driver worked for a contractor, and you may have sued an entity that can claim immunity for that crash while the clock keeps running on the company that's actually responsible.
| RTD employee driving | Contractor employee driving | |
|---|---|---|
| Who you sue | RTD and its driver | The contracting company and its driver |
| 182-day CGIA notice | Required, and missing it bars the claim | Not required for the contractor, but send it to RTD anyway |
| Damages cap | $505,000 per person, $1,421,000 per occurrence (claims accruing 2026 through 2029) | No CGIA cap |
| Punitive damages | Not available against RTD | Ordinary Colorado rules apply |
| Waiting period before suit | 90 days after notice, or until RTD denies the claim | None |
| Deadline to file suit | Generally 3 years for a motor vehicle claim | Generally 3 years for a motor vehicle claim |
How Do You Find Out Who Was Driving?
Usually not from the scene. The police report will show the bus and its owner, but the owner is RTD either way. The answer typically comes from the bus number, the route, and the time, which together identify the operating division, and from RTD's and the contractor's responses once the claim is opened. That's one more reason to write down the bus number before you leave. It's printed on the front, back, and sides.
What Is the 182-Day Notice, and Where Does It Go?
It's a written notice of claim that has to be delivered within 182 days after you discovered the injury, which for a crash is almost always the day it happened. For a local public entity like RTD, it goes to the governing body or the attorney representing the entity (C.R.S. § 24-10-109(3)). It has to state the facts of the crash, the nature and extent of the injury, and the damages claimed, among other things. Colorado courts treat the deadline as jurisdictional, so a late notice ends the claim against RTD no matter how clear the fault is.
After the notice is filed, you generally can't sue RTD until it denies the claim or 90 days pass. I covered the notice rules in detail in The 182-Day Deadline That Can Kill a Colorado Injury Claim.
How Long Do You Have to Sue RTD?
The notice is the short deadline. The deadline to actually file suit over a crash involving a motor vehicle is generally three years, even against a government entity. In Gonzales v. City and County of Denver, 998 P.2d 51 (Colo. App. 1999), the court applied the three-year motor vehicle statute (C.R.S. § 13-80-101(1)(n)) instead of the two-year statute that covers most claims against public entities. A wrongful death claim has a two-year deadline (C.R.S. § 13-80-102(1)(d)). Don't plan around the longest number. Plan around the 182 days.
How Do You Get the Bus Video Before It's Gone?
Fast, and in writing. RTD buses carry multiple cameras, inside and out, and that footage is often the best evidence in the case. But it isn't yours automatically, and recording systems don't keep footage forever.
- Send a preservation letter right away to RTD and, if a contractor may be involved, to the contractor too. Identify the bus number, route, date, and time window, and ask for every camera angle, the GPS location data, and dispatch radio recordings.
- Request the video under the Colorado Open Records Act. Expect pushback. CORA lets agencies withhold records tied to an active investigation, and a 2018 Denver7 investigation found RTD denying crash video requests on that basis after police had already closed their cases.
- Be ready to file suit to get it. Sometimes discovery in a lawsuit is the only way the video comes out. That's exactly what happened in my 16th Street Mall case.
- Look for other cameras. Gas stations, parking lots, storefronts, doorbell cameras, and other vehicles' dash cams. Downtown, businesses facing the street can have the angle the bus doesn't.
The 16th Street Mall Case
At a prior firm, I represented a woman who was hit by an RTD bus on the 16th Street Mall and broke her foot. The whole case came down to one question: was she still on the sidewalk, or had she stepped off it into the bus lane? If she was in the street, there was a comparative fault argument that could have cut her recovery or wiped it out under Colorado's 50% rule. If the bus came up onto the sidewalk, it's hard to blame a pedestrian for standing where pedestrians are supposed to stand.
We didn't get the bus video until after we filed suit. When it came out, it showed the bus had come up onto the sidewalk. The case settled.
That isn't a freak scenario. Federal Transit Administration data counts 7,298 bus-to-person collisions reported nationwide from 2008 to 2021, causing 537 deaths and 7,329 injuries, and the FTA lists sidewalks next to the bus path as a recognized hazard, along with the blind spots created by a bus's front pillars and mirrors.
Past results don't guarantee a similar outcome in any other case.
What Records Matter Besides the Video?
Plenty, though not every case needs all of them. I decide what to chase case by case, because every records fight costs time and money that come out of the client's recovery. The usual list:
- Maintenance and inspection records for the bus: brakes, mirrors, and the camera system itself. Contracted buses are often maintained at the contractor's own facility, so those records may sit with the contractor, not RTD.
- The driver's file: training, discipline, prior incidents, and the shift schedule leading up to the crash.
- The internal accident report and the driver's own written statement.
- GPS and location data, the same system that powers real-time bus tracking, which can show speed and position.
- Dispatch radio recordings from around the time of the crash.
- The operating contract between RTD and the contractor, which sets safety standards and spells out insurance and indemnity.
The approach is the same one I use against trucking companies, which I walk through in What Happens When a Trucking Company Fights Liability.
What If You Were a Passenger on the Bus?
Passengers get hurt in collisions, but also in hard stops, in falls when the bus pulls away before they're seated, and while getting on or off. I've represented passengers hurt when the bus driver caused a crash with another vehicle and when the driver stopped abruptly. The same first questions apply: who employed the driver, and has notice gone to RTD. Transit operators owe their passengers a high standard of care, and a fall caused by a careless start or stop is a real claim, not just bad luck.
Your own auto insurance may help even though you weren't in your car. Many policies' MedPay coverage applies when you're hurt as a pedestrian or a passenger in another vehicle. See Your MedPay Ran Out. Here's Who Pays Your Medical Bills Next.
What About Light Rail and Commuter Rail?
The entity question gets even more important on the rails.
- Light rail and the N Line are run by RTD. But the CGIA's motor vehicle waiver is written for motor vehicles, and Colorado courts have described a motor vehicle as one that doesn't run on rails or tracks, so a train crash raises different immunity questions than a bus crash.
- The A, B, and G commuter rail lines are operated under a long-term concession by Denver Transit Partners, a private company, so the defendant may not be RTD at all.
What Should You Do After an RTD Bus Crash?
- Get medical care and tell the doctor everything that hurts.
- Write down the bus number, route, direction, and time, plus the stop or intersection.
- Photograph the scene, especially where you were standing or where your car ended up relative to the curb and lane lines.
- Get names and numbers from witnesses, including other passengers.
- Note nearby cameras: gas stations, parking lots, storefronts, doorbells.
- Get the police report number.
- Don't give a recorded statement to RTD's claims department or a contractor's insurer before talking to a lawyer.
- Put the 182-day date on your calendar, and get the notice out long before it.
What It Costs to Hire Me
My fee is 29% pre-litigation and 33% if we sue, compared to the 33-35% and 40-45% most Colorado firms charge. RTD cases end up in litigation more often than most, because sometimes a lawsuit is the only way to get the video. Even on a claim that reaches the $505,000 CGIA cap, the difference between a 33% and a 40% litigation fee is $35,350. See how my fees work.
If you were hit by an RTD bus, or hurt riding one, I'll figure out who was actually operating it and make sure the right notices go out on time. Call me directly at 877-2929-LAW. You'll talk to me, not an intake team. For more, see my pedestrian accident page or learn about working with a Denver personal injury lawyer.
RTD Bus Accident FAQ
Can I sue RTD if a bus hit me?
Yes. The Colorado Governmental Immunity Act waives RTD's immunity for injuries caused by an RTD employee operating an RTD vehicle on the job (C.R.S. § 24-10-106(1)(a)). You have to send written notice within 182 days, and damages are capped. If the driver worked for a private contractor, the claim generally runs against the contractor instead.
Do I need to file a notice of claim against RTD?
If RTD employed the driver, yes. Written notice has to reach RTD's governing body or its attorney within 182 days after you discovered the injury (C.R.S. § 24-10-109). If a contractor employed the driver, the CGIA notice isn't required for claims against the contractor, but it's smart to send it to RTD anyway until the driver's employer is confirmed.
How much can I recover from RTD?
For claims accruing from January 1, 2026 through 2029, the CGIA caps recovery at $505,000 per person and $1,421,000 per occurrence. Claims that accrued from 2022 through 2025 fall under a $424,000 per-person cap. Punitive damages aren't available against RTD. Claims against a private contractor aren't subject to the CGIA cap (Henisse v. First Transit, Inc., Colo. 2011).
How do I know if the bus driver worked for RTD or a contractor?
You usually can't tell from the bus, because contracted buses carry the same RTD branding. The bus number, route, and time identify the operating division, and the answer is typically confirmed once the claim is opened with RTD and the contractor.
Can RTD refuse to give me the bus video?
RTD can deny an open records request when an investigation is still active, and it has denied crash video requests on that basis before. A preservation letter should go out immediately so the footage isn't lost. If RTD still won't produce it, filing suit and requesting it in discovery may be the only way to get it.
How long do I have to file a lawsuit after an RTD bus crash?
The 182-day notice deadline comes first. The deadline to file suit over a crash involving a motor vehicle is generally three years, even against a public entity (Gonzales v. City and County of Denver, 998 P.2d 51 (Colo. App. 1999)). A wrongful death claim must generally be filed within two years.
This post is general information, not legal advice. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome in any other case.
