Denver backs Front Range rail plan, but 2029 service and stations remain conditional
A July 13 proclamation supports the district’s proposed service and two special-event stations, but voter approval, railroad agreements, funding and final station decisions remain ahead.
Denver City Council adopted a proclamation July 13 supporting the Front Range Passenger Rail District’s Colorado Connector plan and two potential special-event stations in the city. The political endorsement does not commit Denver to a rail line or guarantee service by 2029.
The council approved Proclamation No. 26-0866, titled “A Proclamation Supporting the Front Range Passenger Rail District’s Proposed Special Events Stations and the Development of Passenger Rail Service Along the Front Range,” the council’s agenda and meeting record show. The proclamation directs the clerk and recorder to affix the city seal and send a copy to the district.
The district describes the Colorado Connector as planned intercity passenger rail between Fort Collins and Pueblo using existing freight-rail corridors. The proclamation says initial service is anticipated “as early as 2029” and remains pending voter approval, making 2029 a target rather than a firm opening date.
The two Denver stations also remain unsettled. Their inclusion is conditional on final approval from the Class I host railroad or other partners. A presentation in the council record says the district has a signed term sheet with BNSF Railway, but the available record does not establish that all required host-rail agreements are complete or that an agreement with Union Pacific is final.
The district says annual local-return payments to Denver would begin after voters approve the measure and continue for 25 years. Reporting on the plan says the Fort Collins-to-Denver phase can proceed with existing funding, while the Denver-to-Pueblo segment would require a voter-approved sales tax. The available record does not identify the ballot measure’s number, wording or election date.
District General Manager Sal Pace told the council the proclamation would qualify Denver for an additional 10% local return — described as about $22.5 million on top of $225 million. That is a district estimate tied to future approvals, not money Denver has received or appropriated. For now, the city’s obligation is administrative: seal and transmit the proclamation. The record does not show Denver committing construction funds or taking on an operating role.