County government reporter Carlyn Ray Mitchell observes that over the years, Gazette reporters have learned not to refer to County Commissioner Douglas Bruce as “Doug” when mentioning him in print. It’s gotta be Douglas.

And the TABOR author bites his colleagues just as hard when they don’t use his official title: “Commissioner.”

At the Nov. 15 meeting when County Attorney Bill Louis called him “Mr. Bruce,” Bruce shot back, “It is Commissioner Bruce, Mr. Louis.”

If he ends up in a new job in Denver, presumably he’ll want to be known as “Representative Bruce” on all references. Hopefully, there won’t be a problem the first time someone refers to him on the House floor as “the gentleman from Colorado Springs.”

PARKING TIPS

From the “things that make you go hmmm” department: Ever notice you’re allowed to tip parking valets at Penrose Main Hospital, 2215 N. Cascade Ave., but not at Memorial Health System’s central hospital at 1400 E. Boulder St.?

Memorial’s Rita Burns said tipping is banned to relieve any “burden” visitors might feel, and also to ease the hospital’s parking woes.

IF BY SEA . . .

Amid the hustle-bustle of the daily commute in Colorado Springs, perhaps you’ve missed some of the less popular modes of travel.

Take the city’s ferryboat system. Gazette reporter Perry Swanson noticed that little more than a dozen residents took the vessel to their jobs in 2000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Just think of how much smoother the sailing would be if more jumped aboard.

Hold on. Colorado Springs has no ferry. But that’s not the only item that sounds fishy in the bureau’s report of how residents get to work.

In addition to driving, walking, bicycling and other familiar means of locomotion, the bureau reports 14 residents went by ferry, 24 by railroad, 32 by subway or elevated train, and 41 by streetcar or trolley car.

Don’t worry. There’s no secret trolley system. The numbers are off-kilter because bureau surveys ask people how they got to work the previous week. That’s not always the same as how people get to work on a daily basis, Census Bureau spokeswoman Shelly Lowe said. People who worked elsewhere that week, in New York City, say, might have taken a subway or a ferryboat.

Colorado Springs remains a city of lonely, four-wheel commuters. Four out of five get to the salt mine in a car by themselves — a figure that hasn’t changed since at least 1990.

FORTE’S REPORT CARD

Colorado Springs Utilities CEO Jerry Forte scored 3.56 on a scale of 1 to 5 for the third quarter. That means he performed between “meets” and “exceeds” expectations, he reported this week to the Utilities Board, composed of the City Council.

Forte is measured on customer and stakeholder perspectives, reliability of service, corporate responsibility to the environment and community needs, competitive rates and financial stability.

CONTACT THE WRITER: 636-0238 or pam.zubeck@gazette.com