COLORADO SPRINGS, CO — Last year, the State Legislature passed a bill to create a Front Range Passenger Rail District which has the power to build and operate the Front Range Passenger Rail.
Mountain Metro Transit presented to City Council an update on the location study for the Amtrak Southwest Chief and Front Range Passenger Rail passenger station being proposed for Colorado Springs.
A new study found some potential sites that were adjacent to the current rail corridor, some sites are historic rail use, general space for station needs and proximity to origins and destinations.
Potential sites include:
- Fontanero Area
- Rio Grande Depot Area
- America the Beautiful Park Area
- Drake Power Plant Area
- Tejon - Nevada Area
- Shooks Run Area
- Future BNSF Yard Area
- Current BNSF Yard Area
- Santa Fe Depot - Catalyst Area
- Las Vegas - Rail Corridor Area
The possible sites for the station would feature multimodal integration that includes local and regional transit, four of the primary locations in the study are located in the downtown area.
"It's really an exciting time for Colorado Springs, and if we can find a suitable station location for a restored rail service, it would benefit all of us here in the Pikes Peak region," said Brian Vitulli, Transit Planning Supervisor, Mountain Metro Transit.
The Front Range Passenger Rail Commission was created by state lawmakers in 2017 to study options for creating passenger rail service.
The study process for the location began in November 2021 and is expected to end sometime this Summer with the final decision set for that location in El Paso County.
_____
Watch KOAA News5 on your time, anytime with our free streaming app available for your Roku, FireTV, AppleTV and Android TV. Just search KOAA News5, download and start watching.
