RTD will not open G-Line or R-Line before end of year as planned
RTD says it doesn’t know for sure when it will be able to open the Denver-area lines
The Regional Transportation District will not open its G-Line commuter rail or the light-rail R-Line in the Denver suburbs before the end of the year as planned, officials said Friday, as testing on both routes continues.
“There are only so many days left within which we can complete the testing and we have basically exhausted that time,” Scott Reed, an RTD spokesman, said. “Because of the sheer lack of days remaining before the end of year, we are not going to be able to open the G-Line.”
The 11-mile G-Line connecting Denver Union Station to Wheat Ridge, via Arvada and Adams County, was expected to be completed in the fall. It is being built and managed by Denver Transit Partners, which has been under fire for its handling of the University of Colorado A-Line out to Denver International Airport.
RTD’s at-grade crossing problems, in which gates close too early and stay down too long because of a software glitch, have required that the agency operate under a waiver from the Federal Railroad Administration since the A-Line opened in April and the B-Line to and from Westminster opened in July.
RTD told The Denver Post earlier this month that the troubles with the crossing arms threatened to push the debut of the G-Line into the new year.
The light-rail R-line through the heart of Aurora was slated to be finished before the end of 2016. It is being built by contractor Kiewit.
RTD says it doesn’t know for certain when it will be able to open the lines and that it is looking at all options in order to get the routes open as soon as possible.
“We’re not sure yet,” Reed said. “We’re not going to make a prediction at this time until we have a better indication of where we are. … We appreciate the anticipation that has been building on this. We also appreciate the patience people are showing on this.”