Joint Service Partnership revives the Northwest Rail Line

In 2004, the Regional Transportation District (RTD) ballot initiative, FasTracks, was a $4.7 billion transit plan for the Denver region, featuring a Northwest Rail line from Union Station to Boulder and Longmont as a key component.

Since the FasTracks ballot initiative was passed over 20 years ago, the project has stalled due to poor planning, increasing costs, and a lack of adequate funding resources. The full completion of the Northwest Rail line has been pushed out to 2050 or later, while Boulder County residents continue to pay the tax without any passenger rail service.

During this 20-year period waiting for a train, the Colorado legislature created the Front Range Passenger Rail District (FRPRD) in 2021, shifting state priorities to completing the Northwest Rail and building an intercity connected passenger rail network from Fort Collins to Trinidad. The Front Range Passenger Rail line is a proposed intercity passenger rail service designed to connect communities along Colorado's Front Range, including communities in Boulder County.

In February 2024, the Polis Administration, RTD, and FRPRD released a white paper exploring the possibility of a new Joint Service Partnership (JSP) that would enable Colorado to complete the voter-approved Northwest Rail line between Denver, Boulder, and Longmont and to build the first phase of FRPR by extending service to Fort Collins. This rail service would use the existing Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) freight rail line through Boulder, Longmont, Loveland, and Fort Collins (FRPR Northwest Phase 1).

Lisa Kaufman, Senior Advisor to Governor Polis, presented an overview of the JSP at a Commuting Solutions membership meeting on Feb. 12. At the end of her presentation, Kaufman was joined by Michael Davies, Government Relations Officer for RTD, Paul Des Rocher, Director of the Division of Transit and Rail for the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), and Chris Nevitt, Board Chair for FRPRD.

The JSP has three premises:

• one operator running the service between Denver and Fort Collins,

• an access agreement with BNSF to allow passenger rail service to operate, and

• one route called the RTD B-Line before a transfer to the BNSF freight rail line to Fort Collins.

The JSP white paper said the plan will result in increased efficiencies, making it easier for all parties to coordinate for reliable and frequent service. The one access agreement ensures that the host railroad, BNSF, can efficiently and promptly plan and execute passenger rail service. Ultimately, the partnership would be a starter service upon which to build for future expansion. It could stand alone, merge, or be acquired by FRPR once FRPR successfully passes a sales tax ballot initiative, which is slated to be on the ballot for the fall of 2026.

The JSP's concept will be a hybrid rail line commuter and intercity passenger rail line from Denver's Union Station to Fort Collins, offering eight stops with a frequency of three round trips per day. The stops would include Denver Union Station and RTD's stations at Westminster, Broomfield, and Louisville, followed by Boulder, Longmont, Loveland, and Fort Collins.

Initially, JSP would be governed by an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) among the paying parties of RTD, Colorado Transportation Investment Office, (CTIO), Clean Transit Enterprise (CTE), CDOT, and FRPR, all administered by CDOT. Notably absent is any mention of stops in Gunbarrel, Niwot or Berthoud, the smaller communities along the route.

The projected costs for operation, maintenance, and debt service are projected to total $83 million annually, including $32 million for operations and maintenance and $51 million for debt service. The funding would come from the state and RTD under the plan. If the state contributes $42 million yearly, RTD must address a $41 million gap, less than the $51 million RTD would have to cover independently. Operations funding is anticipated to come from four primary sources: Senate Bill (SB) 24-184 (congestion impact fee revenue), SB 24-230 (oil and gas production fee revenue), RTD operating contribution, and farebox and ancillary revenue.

SB 24-184 creates a dedicated funding source, the congestion impact fee, for rail and transit through the CTIO, and expands CTIO's capacity to prioritize the mitigation of roadway congestion. The bill requires CTIO to administer a congestion impact fee of up to $3 per day on all short-term vehicle rentals. Receipts are estimated at $57M in fiscal year 2026, growing to $110M by fiscal year 2050.

SB 24-230 imposes an incremental oil and gas production fee, commencing on July 1, 2025, to be allocated to a Clean Transit Enterprise (CTE) Sub Fund, 20% of which will be dedicated to the Rail Funding Program.

According to Kaufman, adequate funding resources exist for the launch of the JSP. Funding is anticipated to come from six primary sources: the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvement (CRISI) grant of $66.4M (awarded), state matching funds of $27.9M (awarded), SB 24-184 fee revenue, SB 24-230 fee revenue, external financing proceeds, which SB-184 revenues will secure, and an RTD capital contribution.

Nearly all infrastructure investments for the JSP would benefit the eventual FRPR service from Denver Union Station to Fort Collins. Kaufman indicated that further study is needed to define the service, negotiate an access agreement with BNSF, develop an interagency agreement, and a finance plan.

If the JSP succeeds and a merger occurs between commuter and intercity passenger rail from Denver to Fort Collins, the partnership anticipates a starting timeline of 2029.

Finally, 25 years after voters agreed to tax themselves for rail transit, Boulder County residents may see a local benefit of their tax dollars.