RTD Northwest Rail Open House Coming up in Gunbarrel

The Regional Transportation District (RTD) is hosting an open house on Tuesday, Jan. 31 in the Hampton Inn & Suites in Gunbarrel at 6333 Lookout Rd. You may arrive any time between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. to learn about the Northwest Rail project and provide input.

Northwest Rail is the long-promised provision for rail service from Denver to Boulder and Longmont that voters approved as part of the FasTracks transit expansion in 2004. FasTracks has provided 25 miles of light rail and 53 miles of commuter rail, but has yet to reach Boulder and Longmont.

The current iteration of the rail solution is called the Northwest Rail Peak Service. It would use the existing Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) railway and would be called "commuter rail" in contrast with "light rail" because it uses existing heavy rail lines which are primarily used to transport freight.

RTD's website on this project explains that it has been challenging for RTD to negotiate the use of BNSF's rails for commuter trains, an issue that apparently was not addressed appropriately when FasTracks was first proposed.

RTD's website claims that this is why it has taken so long to fulfill the promise of rail service to Boulder and Longmont, though historically, explanations included underestimating initial costs, the recession in 2008, and a continuing rise in construction costs. RTD states that this project is starting small as a result, with only three southbound trips to Denver in the morning and three northbound trips from Denver in the evening.

RTD describes this as an extension of the existing "B" line from Denver to Westminster. The existing B line runs hourly throughout the day.

The proposed route diagram shows where train stations are proposed. There is one in Boulder and one in Longmont. There is no stop planned for Niwot or Gunbarrel.

The project is in the study phase and is intended to generate engineering plans and cost estimates for this level of service. It does not preclude future expansion of the service.

The open house will not include a formal presentation. You are invited to attend at any time during the open hours to learn more about the project, talk with project staff and provide input. If you cannot attend there is an option for an online self-guided meeting and input via email. More information about the project and this event can be found in RTD's project website at:

https://www.rtd-denver.com/projects/northwest-rail-peak-service-study