A Line (RTD)

A Line

A Line bridge over Peña Boulevard
Overview
Type Commuter Rail
System Regional Transportation District
Status Undergoing testing[1]
Locale Denver Metropolitan Area
Termini Union Station
Denver International Airport
Stations 8 (1 current, 7 new) [2]
Website Official website
Operation
Opened April 22, 2016 (scheduled)
Owner Regional Transportation District
Operator(s) Denver Transit Partners[3]
Rolling stock Hyundai Rotem Silverliner V
Technical
Line length 23.5 mi (37.82 km)
Track gauge 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Electrification Overhead lines 25 kV, 60 Hz
Route diagram
Legend
Denver International Airport Denver International Airport (2016)
E-470 Tollway
Peña Boulevard (2016)
40th Ave. & Airport Blvd.
Gateway Park

 (2016)
I-70
I-225
Peoria (2016)
 R  Line (2016)
Central Park (2016)
Colorado Boulevard
40th & Colorado (2016)
38th & Blake (2016)

 L  Line (TBD)

 B  &  G  Lines (2016),  N  Line (2018)
Amtrak Amtrak California Zephyr
Union StationAmtrak ( B  &  G  2016), ( N  2018)
 C ,  E , &  W  Lines

The A Line,[2] also known as the East Rail Line during construction, will be a Regional Transportation District (RTD) commuter rail line serving Denver and Aurora, Colorado, operating between Downtown Denver and Denver International Airport (DIA).[4] As the second line of RTD’s FasTracks expansion plan, the East Corridor is being constructed and will be operated under the Eagle P3 public-private partnership.[3] RTD designated the line with the letter “A”, denoting service to the airport and Aurora. Groundbreaking for the A Line was held on August 26, 2010[5] and service is scheduled to begin April 22, 2016.[4][6] The first electric multiple unit railcars were pulled along the route on April 3, 2015, commencing testing and commissioning of the line.[7]

History

Mass transit has been under consideration for the corridor between Downtown Denver and Denver International Airport since the latter was proposed in the 1980s. The project gathered momentum in 1997 when a Major Investment Study was completed for the corridor, encouraging fixed-guideway mass transit (light rail or commuter rail), highway widening and general improvements. The project was approved as part of the FasTracks transit expansion package in November 2004, went through regulatory processes and was approved by the Federal Transit Administration in November 2009.[8] In July 2007, it was decided to use electric instead of diesel propulsion over speed and air pollution concerns.[9]

Route

The A Line route follows and remains within a mile of Interstate 25, Interstate 70, and the airport access highway (Peña Boulevard). The line makes use of a preexisting Union Pacific Railroad right-of-way along the portion of the route from downtown Denver heading east, then deviates to the north along Peña Boulevard in newly-created right-of-way. Peña Boulevard was designed with an extra wide median between its inbound and outbound lanes that could have been used for rail transit, though ultimately the East Rail Corridor alignment was offset from the highway right-of-way.

Leaving Union Station the line follows the Union Pacific corridor past Coors Field to reach a station at 38th and Blake Streets shared with the future Central Corridor expansion. From there the line turns east alongside 40th Avenue past the Denver Union Pacific Intermodal Yard. Just east of Josephine Street the corridor turns two blocks north then east again to stay along the Union Pacific corridor to reach the 40th Avenue and Colorado Boulevard station. After passing under Colorado Boulevard the line parallels Smith Road, with a station at Central Park Boulevard in the redevelopment area of the decommissioned Stapleton International Airport. Shortly after entering Aurora, the line reaches a station at Peoria Street, which will be shared with the new R Line. Continuing east, alongside Smith Road, the line passes under Peoria Street and then Interstate 225. Just west of Airport Boulevard, the line rises on a viaduct curving north over the Union Pacific tracks, Airport Boulevard, 32nd Avenue, and Interstate 70. Having left the Union Pacific corridor, the viaduct then descends to a station at the existing Park and Ride at 40th Avenue and Airport Boulevard. From there the line reenters Denver, following the east side of Peña Boulevard. North of 56th Avenue it enters a recently added[10] Peña Boulevard[2] station at 61st Avenue.[11][12] The line continues north and east, parallel to Peña Boulevard and crossing over E-470. Turning north, the line crosses over Peña Boulevard adjacent to DIA runway 7/25 and then runs east between the airport secure area and 78th Avenue. The line then crosses over the south/west terminal exit lanes of Peña Boulevard ending at a station on the south side of the DIA Hotel and Transit Center, itself at the south end of the DIA Jeppesen Terminal.[13][14]

Stations

Name Opening Year Interchange Municipality park-n-Ride? Status
A Line (Union Station - Denver Airport)
Union Station/
Lower Downtown (LoDo)/
Coors Field/16th Street Mall		 2014  B  &  G  Lines
 C ,  E , &  W  Lines
AmtrakAmtrak
FREE MallRide (16th St)		 Denver No Open
38th & Blake 2016 Proposed  D  Line Denver Yes Under Construction
40th & Colorado 2016 None Denver Yes Under Construction
Central Park Rail: 2016; Bus: 13-Sept-2015 None Denver Yes Under Construction
Peoria 2016  R  Line Aurora Yes Under Construction
40th Ave & Airport Blvd / Gateway Park 2016 None Aurora Yes Under Construction
Peña Blvd[15][16] 2016[2] None Denver Yes Under Construction
Denver Airport 2016 None Denver No Under Construction

References

  1. ↑ Heffel, Nathan (April 17, 2015). "RTD East Rail Line cars enter DIA station under their own power". Colorado Public Radio. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "RTD - A Line". RTD - A Line. Regional Transportation District. Retrieved 21 June 2015.
  3. 1 2 "Eagle P3 Commuter Rail Project, Denver, USA". Railway Technology. Retrieved 1 September 2011.
  4. 1 2 "RTD - East Rail Line". Regional Transportation District. Retrieved April 29, 2015.
  5. ↑ "East Corridor Groundbreaking!". Denver Infill Blog. Retrieved July 26, 2010.
  6. ↑ "RTD service from Union Station to DIA scheduled to start April 22". The Denver Channel. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
  7. ↑ "Denver’s new EMUs take "maiden voyage"". Railway Age. Retrieved April 7, 2015.
  8. ↑ "Fastracks - East Corridor". Regional Transportation District. Retrieved April 29, 2010.
  9. ↑ "Electric Multiple Unit" (PDF). East Corridor Environmental Impact Statement. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 20, 2008. Retrieved July 23, 2014.
  10. ↑ "New train station part of East Rail". rtd-fastracks.com. Regional Transportation District. Retrieved 20 August 2015.
  11. ↑ Hodes, David. "Colorado Experiences Phenomenal Success (with Photo)". Business Xpansion Journal. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
  12. ↑ "Eagle P3 Project update", Fast Tracks Monitor Committee, May 13, 2014
  13. ↑ "Hotel and Transit Center". FlyDenver.com. Retrieved May 31, 2010.
  14. ↑ "Appendix A Preferred Alternate Maps" (PDF). East Corridor Environmental Impact Statement. Retrieved April 29, 2010.
  15. ↑ "Peña Station Rail Stop", Flydenver.com, 2015
  16. ↑ "61st & Peña Station Area Plan", City and County of Denver, 13 Jan 2014

External links

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