Regional Transportation District (RTD) in Denver has completed the first stage of its Downtown Rail Reconstruction Project ahead of schedule. According to RTD-Denver, the project, which began in early June and was initially set to run through mid-September, wrapped up three weeks in advance. This allows intersections and pedestrian areas previously affected by construction to reopen, and traffic detours have been lifted.
Specifically, this phase addressed the light rail track and infrastructure at five critical intersections including 15th and Stout, 17th and Stout, 15th and California, 17th and California, and Broadway and Welton, as per KDVR. Despite finishing this section early, RTD won't resume light rail service in the Downtown Loop until Sept. 29, to coincide with its broader service changes aimed at enhancing reliability and performance across bus and rail networks. This pause, allows RTD employees, including operators and engineers to select their shifts for the upcoming schedule that has been set through the end of September.
This extensive reconstruction work marks a historical first for RTD's oldest rail infrastructure, as detailed by Progressive Railroading. Before this summer's comprehensive project, RTD had initiated 17 endeavors from 2012 to 2023 in the central corridor aimed at replacing sections of rail and other infrastructure components, but none as sweeping as this complete reconstruction.
