The W Line, also called the West Rail Line, is a light rail line in

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

, Lakewood, and Golden,

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. The W Line was the first part of

FasTracks FasTracks is a multibillion-dollar public transportation expansion plan under construction in metropolitan Denver, Colorado, United States. Developed by the Regional Transportation District (RTD), the plan consists of new commuter rail, light ...

to break ground, on May 16, 2007. The line, the only line to traverse the West Corridor, opened for service on Friday, April 26, 2013.

History

The Denver, Lakewood and Golden Railroad started operations in the area in 1893, switching to electric traction by 1909 as the Denver and Intermountain Railroad. The route ran from the downtown Denver

interurban The Interurban (or radial railway in Europe and Canada) is a type of electric railway, with streetcar-like electric self-propelled rail cars which run within and between cities or towns. They were very prevalent in North America between 1900 ...

loop, along Lakewood Gulch and 13th Avenue, continuing out to Golden.

Interurban The Interurban (or radial railway in Europe and Canada) is a type of electric railway, with streetcar-like electric self-propelled rail cars which run within and between cities or towns. They were very prevalent in North America between 1900 ...

service continued until 1950, when all Denver area trolley and interurban service ceased. Plans to resurrect a railway line from Denver to Golden were advanced in the mid-1970s and in the 1980s RTD purchased the

right-of-way Right of way is the legal right, established by grant from a landowner or long usage (i.e. by prescription), to pass along a specific route through property belonging to another. A similar ''right of access'' also exists on land held by a gov ...

to an unused rail corridor between the two cities. A study conducted in 1997 stated the need for a rapid transit corridor through the region, and settled on 13th Avenue as the locally preferred alternative. An environmental impact statement was started in 2001 and finished with a record of decision in 2004. A "rail-pulling" ceremony was held on the 13th Avenue corridor on May 16, 2007, and construction started in earnest in early 2008. As project costs climbed above the initial estimates, cuts were made, including reducing the line from a

double track A double-track railway usually involves running one track in each direction, compared to a single-track railway where trains in both directions share the same track. Overview In the earliest days of railways in the United Kingdom, most li ...

to a single-track operation from west of the Federal Center Station to the end of the line at the Jefferson County Government Center. The first full test run of the line happened on January 3, 2013, in anticipation of the official opening, April 26, 2013, eight months ahead of schedule.

Route

The W Line follows the Central Platte Valley Corridor (CPV) from Union Station, stopping at Pepsi Center/Elitch Gardens,

Sports Authority Field at Mile High Empower Field at Mile High (previously known as Broncos Stadium at Mile High, Invesco Field at Mile High and Sports Authority Field at Mile High, and commonly known as Mile High, New Mile High or Mile High Stadium) is an American football stadiu ...

and a relocated Auraria West Campus station. It then leaves the CPV corridor, traveling under

U.S. Route 40 U.S. Route 40 or U.S. Highway 40 (US 40), also known as the Main Street of America, is a major east–west United States Highway traveling across the United States from the Mountain States to the Mid-Atlantic States. As with most routes wh ...

U.S. Route 287 U.S. Route 287 (US 287) is a north–south (physically northwest–southeast) United States highway. At long, it is the second longest three-digit U.S. Route, behind US 281. It serves as the major truck route between Fort Worth and Ama ...

, crosses over the UP/ BNSF consolidated mainline on a new bridge, travels under Interstate 25, and then over the

South Platte River The South Platte River is one of the two principal tributaries of the Platte River. Flowing through the U.S. states of Colorado and Nebraska, it is itself a major river of the American Midwest and the American Southwest/Mountain West. It ...

. The corridor then travels west along the Lakewood Gulch until Lamar station, where it begins to follow 13th Avenue until it reaches the Lakewood Industrial Park at Oak station. From there, the line turns south along the Remington spur to reach the

Denver Federal Center The Denver Federal Center, in Lakewood, Colorado, is part of the General Services Administration and is home to about 6,200 employees of agencies of the federal government of the United States. The Center encompasses an area of about and has 9 ...

. From the Federal Center, the line narrows to a single-track line and travels west along U.S. Route 6 to the western terminus at Jefferson County Government Center in Golden. The single-track section limits headways to no better than every 15 minutes over that section of the line. The W Line is the first light rail route in metro Denver to make extensive use of gated grade crossings within its right-of-way (there were only four such grade crossings on the previously existing network). Some of the route goes through residential areas and concerns about noise led to an innovative solution for the warning system at crossing gates. The warning bells will adjust their volume in response to the ambient noise resulting in 50-70 dB during the evening hours compared to the standard volume of 90-100 dB.

Stations

Four stations along the route were in use previously, including the station which was relocated approximately to the north, and eleven new stations were built for the line. Three different fare zones exist along the W Line.

References

External links

RTD W Line Schedule
* {{RTD Bus & Light Rail 750 V DC railway electrification Railway lines opened in 2013