Mountain passenger rail will roll to and from Granby by 2026, says CDOT
First phase of the rail will be roundtrip service between Denver and Granby
Meg Soyars Van Hauen/Sky-Hi News
According to the Colorado Department of Transportation, the Colorado Mountain Rail project is on track for 2026. Daily passenger service between Denver and Granby is set to begin that November.
On June 18, CDOT representatives held an open house in Fraser for residents express their hopes, questions, and concerns about passenger rail.
The Division of Transit & Rail Assistant Director Maux Sullivan gave a presentation about the project, which, at full build out, will extend to the Yampa Valley. The presentation was followed by a Q&A.
The event was well-attended by stakeholders down the entire proposed corridor, from the Front Range to Routt County. Local attendees included County Commissioner Randy George, Winter Park Resort President and COO Sky Foulks, Winter Park Town Manager Keith Riesberg, and others.
According to Sullivan, the first roundtrip phase of the rail will be a morning commute from Denver Union Station to the Granby station, then a trip back to Denver around the evening.
Once this roundtrip is implemented in November 2026, CDOT will begin their second roundtrip, which will be a reverse of the first.
That time, the train will leave Granby in the morning for Denver, then return to Granby in the evening. This second trip is intended to for Grand County residents to spend the day on the Front Range.
She added that the Denver to Granby service will be modeled after the popular Winter Park Express ski train. The ski train, operated by Amtrak, saw increased on-time performance compared to other Amtrak trains.
A main sticking point for critics of the proposed mountain rail is that Amtrak’s trains historically have not been reliable. CDOT plans for its rail project to offer an on-time option over driving. Like the ski train, CDOT’s proposed route is short and less likely to experience cascading delays from incidents occurring through the line.
The Winter Park Winter Park Express ski train saw a jump in ridership in 2024-25, thanks to lower fares and more on-time reliability than other train routes.
About Colorado Mountain Rail
The passenger rail would bring back a line between Denver and Craig. This rail line stopped serving commuters nearly 60 years ago. The plan looks at reviving old stops in Grand County, as well as utilize existing ones.
The idea for this rail gained steam due to the reduced coal traffic in the Yampa Valley. Currently, only coal trains run from Kremmling up to the Yampa Valley area, which includes Steamboat Springs and Craig.
The project has received funding from two Senate bills: SB24-230, an oil and gas fee, and SB24-184, a rental car fee.
Stranded, injured climber rescued on Capitol Peak
Mountain Rescue Aspen has successfully rescued a climber on Capitol Peak after they were reported “overdue” by the other member of their party.
