DENVER — Light rail service in downtown Denver will be halted from late May through September as part of a four-phase, $152 million project to rebuild much of the infrastructure dating to the opening of the light rail system in 1994, the Regional Transportation District announced Wednesday.
The closure of the downtown loop will begin May 26, with all D and H line trains that normally operate on the loop rerouted to Denver Union Station, while the L Line, which extends northeast of the loop, will be suspended. This will allow for full-depth reconstruction, removing all current track, concrete, ties, and ballast, and work on drains below the rail system before the rebuilding of each section.
“Maintaining RTD’s assets and infrastructure is essential to preserving the region’s previous investments in its mass transportation system,” RTD CEO Debra A Johnson said in a press release. “Managing and maintaining assets in a state of good repair ensures the long-term integrity of the rail network.”
The RTD notes that it had previously performed $19 million in isolated repairs at 17 locations in the central corridor, while the Denver Post reports the current plan comes after discovery of track corrosion along Stout Street in October and November 2022. That problem led to 3-mph slow orders on a curve at 19th and Stout streets for several weeks while repairs were made.
Five major intersections will be involved: 15th and Stout streets; 17th and Stout; 15th and California; 17th and California; and Boradway and Welton Street. Reconstruction of these intersections will not occur at the same time; the RTD said it is working with the City and County of Denver to develop traffic detour plans, and will temporarily introduce free MetroRide bus service along 18th and 19th streets during the light rail outage.
Once the first phase of the project is completed, work will pause until 2025. Phase two will involve midblock construction in the downtown loop; phase three will address work on Colfax Avenue, and phase four will include work on Welton Street.
In the future it would seem that Denver should build another loop parallel to this first one either NW or SE. From the map a loop NW a couple blocks appears more advantageous. That would give more flexibility and maybe one present route could use the new loop?
That way any disruption of one loop would allow a detour on the other loop? That is the way Toronto does track disruptions.
With all the light rail lines downtown, it would seem that the downtown core would be comprehensively covered. But it’s not. The area around the state capitol, where there are many other attractions and destinations as well, is a stiff walk from the nearest RTD station. (Or a cab or a bus.)
No transit system goes everywhere, but this seems a big omission.