staging.rockymountainvoice.com

Menu

El Paso County

School district turns to AI to solve bus driver shortage, add convenience
No Comments
CBS Colorado, El Paso County

School district turns to AI to solve bus driver shortage, add convenience

By Meg Oliver, Analisa Novak | CBS News Colorado The nationwide shortage of school bus drivers has left many students without reliable transportation. In 2023, the number of bus drivers nationwide in K-12 schools dropped to about 192,400, down 15.1% since 2019, according to research by the Economic Policy Institute. Despite offering training and higher salaries, districts like Colorado Springs School District 11 couldn't find enough candidates.  At the beginning of the school year, District 11 had a budget for about 110 bus drivers, but only managed to hire around 60. To address the shortage, the school district partnered with RouteWise AI. The rideshare company HopSkipDrive developed the AI technology being tested. READ THE FULL STORY AT CBS COLORADO
Read More
Applegate: Possible solutions for El Paso County’s immigration problem
No Comments
Commentary, El Paso County, Rocky Mountain Voice

Applegate: Possible solutions for El Paso County’s immigration problem

By Cory Applegate | Guest Columnist El Paso County recently saw two busloads of immigrants here illegally come down from Denver. Since Denver's sanctuary city policies create their own fiscal burden, they now claim they cannot afford to keep taking care of lawbreakers they attracted in the first place. The hospitals in the Denver area gave away $136 million in care last year, which will never be paid back by those with no income or insurance. While Denver's hospitals teeter on the edge of bankruptcy, President Joe Biden refuses to shut down the border. With more than 8,000 illegal crossings per day, none of which are going through a proper port of entry, El Paso County needs to prepare themselves for the inevitable. A distant problem at the southern border is now becoming a present p...
Read More
Mary Bradfield qualifies for ballot in El Paso County’s House District 21 seat
No Comments
El Paso County, Rocky Mountain Voice

Mary Bradfield qualifies for ballot in El Paso County’s House District 21 seat

By BRIAN PORTER | The Rocky Mountain Voice Mary Bradfield, a Republican seeking re-election to House District 21 in El Paso County, has qualified for the primary ballot, the Colorado Secretary of State's office announced Wednesday. Bradfield serves as the minority party's caucus chair in the Colorado House. She submitted 1,758 signatures on a petition to be placed on the primary ballot, and 1,126 signatures were accepted by the Secretary of State's office. She was required to meet a 1,000=signature threshhold. A record of all accepted and rejected signatures, including reasons for each rejection, is on file with the Secretary of State.
Read More
El Paso County Republicans Caldwell and VanderWerf qualify for ballot
No Comments
El Paso County, Rocky Mountain Voice

El Paso County Republicans Caldwell and VanderWerf qualify for ballot

By BRIAN PORTER | The Rocky Mountain Voice The petitions of two more Republican candidates have been verified by the Colorado Secretary of State's office, qualifying them for a place on the primary ballot. Stan VanderWerf, a candidate for Colorado Senate District 12 in western El Paso County, and Jarvis Caldwell, a candidate for Colorado House District 20 in northern El Paso County, both have qualified for the ballot. VanderWerf submitted 1,983 signatures, with 1,144 accepted by the Secretary of State. Caldwell submitted 2,166 signatures, with 1,297 accepted by the Secretary of State. The threshold to qualify for both offices is 1,000 signatures. A record of all accepted and rejected signatures, including reasons for each rejection, is on file with the Secretary of State.
Read More
AI-guided robot used to sort recylables in Colorado Springs
No Comments
CBS 11 KKTV, El Paso County, Local

AI-guided robot used to sort recylables in Colorado Springs

By Kasia Kerridge | CBS 11-Colorado Springs A local recycling facility is the first in southern Colorado to use a robot to help sort materials. 11 News visited Republic Services, near I-25 and Garden of the Gods, to see the AMP Cortex in action. Republic Services says the AI-guided recycling robotic system helps sort food and beverage containers from El Paso, Pueblo, Chaffee and Elbert counties. “It uses a vision system and it recognizes materials that [are] coming up through the stream, and it will decide what to pick,” said maintenance safety tech at Republic Services Thomas Brackett. “It has a vacuum tube, and what it will do is it registers, it will go down and pick it and then it will shoot it down into the shoot that it needs, so it uses air.” READ THE FULL STORY AT CBS 1...
Read More
Colorado GOP sends pro-Trump mailer attacking chairman’s primary opponent, newspaper
No Comments
El Paso County, State, The Colorado Sun

Colorado GOP sends pro-Trump mailer attacking chairman’s primary opponent, newspaper

By Sandra Fish | Colorado Sun The Colorado GOP sent out a pro-Trump mailer this week attacking a congressional primary opponent of party chairman Dave Williams, as well as The Gazette newspaper in Colorado Springs, in the latest example of Williams using his party leadership position to benefit or defend himself and his allies.  The mailer, which appears to target El Paso County voters, accused The Gazette of “corrupt campaigning for Nikki Haley and Jeff Crank.”  Haley, a former U.N. ambassador, is running for president against Donald Trump, while Crank, a conservative commentator, is running in the 5th Congressional District Republican primary against Williams. RED THE FULL STORY AT THE COLORADO SUN
Read More
Colorado Springs cracks down on homeless camping in hopes of pushing people toward shelter, services
No Comments
El Paso County, Local, The Colorado Sun

Colorado Springs cracks down on homeless camping in hopes of pushing people toward shelter, services

By Jennifer Brown and Hugh Carey | Colorado Sun Jeremy Krause has a simple code for making it on the streets of Colorado Springs: “Stay dry and avoid the cops.”  To keep warm, he burns hand sanitizer and rubbing alcohol. To steer clear of the police, he and his dog move often.  But avoiding them is not working as well anymore.  “It wasn’t so bad in the beginning, but the last two years they’ve been really irrational,” said Krause, who has been homeless for about eight years. “They’ve stolen my things like six times. They take your tent, your blankets, your heat, everything you need to survive. That’s to force us into the shelter.” READ THE FULL STORY AT THE COLORADO SUN
Read More
Homicide investigation underway at UCCS campus Friday
No Comments
Colorado Springs Gazette, El Paso County, Local

Homicide investigation underway at UCCS campus Friday

By Abbey Soukup | Colorado Springs Gazette A homicide investigation is underway at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs campus following reports of shots fired early Friday morning, according to Colorado Springs police.  Sgt. Ward with the department's Stetson Hills division said a call of shots fired came in at roughly 6:11 a.m. Friday. As of 7:11 a.m., the department's homicide unit was making its way to the scene.  🚨Happening now🚨CSPD is on scene on a death investigation. This is not an active shooter situation. A partial shelter in place is still in effect for the UCCS Campus as the investigation continues. The campus will be closed for the remainder of the day. https://t.co/zwmiGxYC4T— Colorado Springs Police Department (@CSPDPIO) February 16, 2024 READ ...
Read More
Fort Carson to conduct combat aviation training exercise through March
No Comments
Local, El Paso County, gazette.com

Fort Carson to conduct combat aviation training exercise through March

By Abbey Soukup | Colorado Springs Gazette Beginning Tuesday, the 4th Combat Aviation Brigade will be conducting an aerial gunnery exercise surrounding southern Fort Carson through the beginning of March, according to a Tuesday morning announcement.  Fort Carson officials said the training includes firing weapons from AH-64 Apache helicopters and is conducted to prepare Army aviation units for any potential missions around the world.  Officials said residents in areas surrounding the base should expect periods of increased noise, including in the evening hours and throughout the night.  "Fort Carson is dedicated to being good neighbors and will continue to inform the public about training events that may affect surrounding communities. We strive to balance our tr...
Read More
No Comments
denvergazette.com, El Paso County, Local

Mayor says government must care for migrants arriving in Colorado Springs

By Breeanna Jent | The Gazette Mayor Yemi Mobolade on Friday called on President Joe Biden and federal partners to help ensure a surge of undocumented immigrants crossing the country's southern border does not become a 'crisis' in Colorado Springs. "Immigration is a federal responsibility. It's not in the city's purview but because we have not taken care of the crisis at our southern border, it's meeting our city. I do call on the president of the United States and federal partners to help us to ensure that this crisis doesn't impact our city," Mobolade said from his downtown office during an afternoon broadcast on Facebook Live. Mobolade took to social media on Friday to reiterate Colorado Springs is not a designated sanctuary community and reassured viewers there is not currentl...
Read More