The potential of a Colorado Front Range passenger rail line gets a boost

Colorado is now going to take a deeper look at creating a passenger rail system up and down the Front Range as growth adds to congestion and slows traffic on roads.

"What we've challenged, this is the Front Range Rail Commission, to work on is as soon as possible, create the financial plan," said Gov. Jared Polis in an afternoon discussion about the meaning of new federal recognition as part of the Infrastructure and Investment Jobs Act that Colorado's Front Range rail project has potential. It also means money to further study and design a rail system between Pueblo and Fort Collins.

"You have to really lay the groundwork in the planning process so that when the money's available you can pull the trigger and move forward," said Sal Pace, a commissioner on the Front Range Passenger Rail District.

The Legislature will be looking at the potential of creating some additional funding to pursue the idea as well, which the district believes could be placed -- at least initially, along current freight rail lines. There is a potential of putting to a vote next November a sales tax to ask for public support.

"A lot of the pieces that are happening right now that need to happen ahead of, if and when, the voters of the Front Range rail district specifically need to be asked for something," said Polis.

The Front Range Passenger Rail District right now is looking at how to deal with Colorado's predicted growth of two million more people over the next 25 years. It is in the process of creating a Service Development Plan to submit to the Federal Railroad Administration to address key questions about the rail project, such as, routes, stops, frequency, what would be needed for infrastructure upgrades such as sidings where opposing trains could passe, as well as transit connections and issues like timeline.

"To me it feels like we are not that far away from getting this done, compared to where I was 15 years ago," said Pace, a former minority leader in the Colorado House.

Any creation of a passenger rail system would likely have to be built in stages. A majority of people asked in a questionnaire had a desire to travel to Denver and Colorado Springs, with Fort Collins also listed as a priority. Big federal money would likely be needed as estimates have ranged close to $10 billion and more for a complete buildout.

"If there's a corridor that the state wants to implement, we think this time around there's programs in place to make that happen," said Federal Railroad Administrator Amit Bose.