The Regional Transportation District Board of Directors voted to honor the late Rev. Wade Blank, a disability rights activist who advocated for transit access for the disabled by renaming Civic Center Station as Wade Blank Civic Center Station.

“Disability rights were championed here in Denver, steps from Civic Center Station, as a direct result of the Rev. Blank’s leadership and care,” said Board of Directors Chair Julien Bouquet in a news release. “As was shared in a call to action after Blank’s death, he understood that love is a passionate, lifelong action to preserve and enlarge the joy, dignity and quality of every human life. With this meaningful and important change to one of our most visible stations, RTD is honoring the life and work of a man who aspired toward a more human society that affords access and justice to all.”

Blank, who died in 1993 while trying to rescue his son from a riptide off of Baja, California, was an organizer of the Gang of 19 protests in 1978, when activists blocked RTD buses at Colfax Avenue and Broadway, mere steps from the Civic Center Station, to demand accessible transit.

Now known as the Gang of 19, the group gathered at the intersection of Broadway and Colfax Avenue on July 5 and 6 that year. Protestors halted the RTD buses for these two days, demanding more accessible transportation in Denver.

RTD had recently ordered 250 buses, all without wheelchair lifts. The buses were narrow, steep, and people using wheelchairs could not access them, according to the agency.

““We will ride!” the protesters shouted as they held up signs that said, “Access is a civil right,” and “taxation without transportation.” Their call to action sparked change — RTD updated a third of its bus fleet to include wheelchair lifts, making Denver a pioneer for providing accessible transit options,” said an RTD announcement.

“His work with national transit agencies and the American Public Transportation Association provided a basis for the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, which codified protections against disability-based discrimination across the United States,” said RTD in a release.

The agency will implement the new name beginning in 2026 with updates to digital platforms and station signage. A public event to unveil the updated signage is also planned for early 2026.

“The total cost of the change is estimated at $98,000, which will be paid for through the RTD General Manager and CEO’s contingency fund,” according to the release.