A group of Colorado backers is floating a big, bold idea: a 178‑mile passenger railroad called Denver West Express that would rocket travelers from Denver International Airport deep into the Rockies, with express runs to Avon clocking in at about 97 minutes. The privately pitched line would rely on battery‑electric locomotives, burrow through long tunnels under two mountain passes, and swing south of the state’s worst I‑70 choke points while tapping directly into Breckenridge, Keystone, Copper Mountain, Vail and Beaver Creek. Supporters put the price in the tens of billions of dollars and say the full buildout would take more than a decade.
The outline, described in a July 25 column by Bob Loevy, sketches a new railroad from DIA south to Parker, then west along the U.S. 285 corridor through Bailey before the line climbs toward Guanella Pass. From there, the concept calls for a five‑mile tunnel under the Continental Divide to reach Lake Dillon and Frisco. The route would then continue over Fremont Pass through a 6.5‑mile tunnel into the Avon and Vail region, primarily as single track with passing sidings. Frisco would serve as the first major stop and a key battery recharging hub. Backers envision two locomotives and six coaches per train set, or roughly 520 seats, and an initial fleet of 35 train sets that could trim the DIA‑to‑Avon run to roughly 97 minutes, according to the Denver Gazette.
Battery Power And Downhill Charging
Instead of stringing overhead wire or burning diesel, the Denver West Express pitch leans on battery‑electric locomotives that, in theory, would be charged on a schedule and topped off during layovers. The idea is to pair that with regenerative braking, a long‑established technique that flips traction motors into generators on downhill stretches to capture energy that would otherwise be lost as heat. That recaptured power can be stored on the train or in nearby infrastructure, according to IntechOpen. Even so, engineering tricks alone will not erase the challenges of long tunnels, steep grades and cold‑weather battery performance, which would require extensive testing and, of course, serious funding.
Price Tag, Jobs And Climate Math
Backers estimate construction could take 12–14 years and run as high as $33 billion. They project roughly 72,000 direct and indirect construction jobs plus about 2,100 permanent operating positions once trains are running. The proposal also touts potential climate benefits, claiming it could peel hundreds of millions of vehicle miles off I‑70 and U.S. 285 each year. The concept pegs the reduction at about 340 million vehicle miles and roughly 155,000 metric tons of carbon annually. Those figures, along with the proposed schedule and buildout timeline, come from the Denver Gazette’s summary of the Denver West Express plan.
Where It Fits In Colorado’s Rail Conversation
This mountain express concept is surfacing while Colorado is already deep in another rail debate: Front Range passenger trains along the I‑25 corridor. Those efforts focus on commuter and intercity service linking cities from Pueblo to Fort Collins. By contrast, Denver West Express is framed as a high‑country lifeline aimed at relieving weekend and holiday gridlock on I‑70. Coverage of Front Range rail planning and funding fights has been detailed by Colorado Politics and other state outlets, which have tracked everything from governance structure ideas to potential tax questions.
What’s Next
For now, Denver West Express is still just that: a concept from a group of engineers, architects and business professionals. There is no formal environmental review, no funding package and no regulatory application on the table. Any real project that carves long tunnels, crosses federal lands or shares corridors with freight railroads would have to clear a thicket of multi‑agency approvals and years of studies and permitting. The Colorado Department of Transportation’s programmatic work on the I‑70 mountain corridor offers a reality check on how long and complicated that path can be, suggesting a significant uphill climb before Denver West Express could move from paper to construction, according to CDOT.
