Passengers Can Ride RTD's N Line Starting Monday
THORNTON, Colo. (CBS4) - RTD is set to begin its N Line service Sept. 21. CBS4 took a test run of the service on Thursday.
"I'm just really excited to be able to open a train line, doesn't happen very often," Marcus De Silva, train operator said.
The service leaves from Thornton and stops in Northglenn, Commerce City along the way to its final stop in Denver. Local leaders are hopeful commuters will latch on.
"We have a lot of residents that work down here and that's going to lighten up I-25 and really help with our climate goals," Northglenn Mayor Meredith Leighty said.
The service is part of RTD's voter approved FasTracks program to expand public transit in the Denver metro area. It's forecast to serve up to 9,500 passengers a day, however during this pandemic, ridership was revised to 8,100.
"Being able to hop on a train an even go all the way to the airport is a nice thing," Anthony Fink said.
Fink is a homeowner in the Eastlake neighborhood of Thornton, just hundreds of feet away from 124th Station.
"Being able to hop on a train and even go all the way to the airport is a nice thing," he figured.
However, a new transit line could change his neighborhood.
"Twelve years ago, it was a really small town and not many people came around," Fink said.
Ironically, the N Line follows the path of an old train line. Fink is also concerned about noise.
"My concerns are, are we going to be able to get any sleep after it starts on Monday?"
Fink says the testing phase has resulted in a lot of horn blowing early in the morning and late into the night. He was told that will tone down once normal service starts.
"The convenience of it is going to be nice, but we're also hoping that our lives aren't going to change too much being a couple feet away from the line."
The service officially starts up for the public Monday, Sept. 21 for free, that lasts for a week, then on Sept. 28, it will cost $3 for a one-way trip as part of a ridership promotional offer.