Colorado state officials and the Union Pacific Railroad reached a tentative agreement on the future of the 100-year-old Moffat Tunnel — and, in the process, set the stage to expand passenger rail service in the mountains between Denver and Craig, officials announced Monday.
Barring any major hiccups between now and the formal signing in May, the state will extend the 99-year lease allowing Union Pacific to use the tunnel for another 25 years. In exchange, the state will receive expanded access to Union Pacific’s railroad tracks for passenger trains from Denver to northern Colorado over that time frame.
The final technical details still need to be finalized, but the state’s key negotiators were confident Monday that this agreement would set the stage for final approval.
If all proceeds smoothly, regular daily passenger train service between Denver and Grand County — a portion of the full corridor — could begin in time for the start of the ski season in late 2026. For several years, Amtrak has run the revived Winter Park Express ski train along that route seasonally, but only around weekends — including from Thursdays through Mondays this season.
The mountain rail expansion could eventually lead to up to three roundtrip services per day between Denver and Craig, with several stops, including Winter Park and Steamboat Springs, along the way.
Read the full story from our partners at The Denver Post.
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