A once-in-a-generation opportunity for Tennessee Pass

In 1996, during Union Pacific’s merger with Southern Pacific, Colorado secured Union Pacific’s participation in a feasibility study for the Heart of the Rockies Rail to Trail. The proposed Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger creates a similar opportunity for Colorado to request a renewed commitment.

The proposed transaction is under Surface Transportation Board review in Docket FD 36873. The request is that any state or local support for the merger be conditioned on the railroads making a written commitment to explore railbanking and potential public trail use of Tennessee Pass.

Railbanking is a process that preserves an inactive rail corridor intact for possible future transportation use while allowing it to serve an interim public purpose, such as a trail.

It does not automatically create a trail or require an immediate change in use. Agreements, planning, environmental review, funding, and community participation would still be required.

Learn more about railbanking on Rails to Trails Conservancy’s website here.

No. One of railbanking’s principal purposes is to preserve a corridor for possible future rail use. It allows the corridor to provide a public benefit now while protecting long-term transportation options.

Any future return to rail service would require an appropriate legal process, planning, investment, and consideration of community and environmental impacts.

Passenger rail through Colorado’s mountains is an appealing idea and deserves an honest, fact-based evaluation. Reopening the inactive Tennessee Pass line would require substantial capital investment, reconstruction, ongoing maintenance, operating support, demonstrated passenger demand, and a dedicated funding source.

Without those elements, passenger service could depend on renewed freight operations to help justify reopening the line. Communities should understand what freight might accompany passenger service and evaluate the related safety, watershed, and hazardous-material risks. Exploring railbanking does not prevent passenger-rail discussions; it preserves the corridor while realistic options are studied.

In 1996, Tennessee Pass was included in STRACNET, the Strategic Rail Corridor Network. STRACNET is identified by the U.S. Department of Defense in coordination with the Federal Railroad Administration and identifies commercial rail lines considered important for military deployment, defense installations, and national-defense transportation needs. It is a planning designation; the federal government does not necessarily own or operate the lines. Learn about STRACNET.

Tennessee Pass has since been removed from the current STRACNET network, meaning it no longer carries the same formal national-defense designation it had in 1996. Removal does not require abandonment, prevent future rail use, or mean military cargo could never travel over the line. It does remove one historical reason for treating Tennessee Pass as part of the nation’s minimum strategic defense-rail network.

Union Pacific has also continued to rely on the Moffat Tunnel route and has entered into a new long-term Moffat Tunnel lease with Colorado. Meanwhile, the agricultural, mining, industrial, and other local freight markets that once supported Tennessee Pass service have changed significantly. Colorado’s trail networks, outdoor-recreation economy, community connections, and understanding of watershed risks have also grown.

No. The immediate request is for a written commitment to participate in a good-faith planning process with the State of Colorado and corridor communities.

That process would explore railbanking, update the feasibility study, evaluate potential public uses, and identify realistic next steps. It would not predetermine the corridor’s future or require an immediate trail conversion.

• Railbanking requirements and corridor preservation.
• Current ownership, easements, access, and crossings.
• Bridges, tunnels, drainage, and other infrastructure.
• Trail design, safety, emergency access, and maintenance.
• Connections to communities, public lands, and existing trails.
• Watershed, wildlife, and environmental considerations.
• Construction costs, funding sources, and management options.
• Recreation, tourism, public-health, and economic benefits.

The State of Colorado should lead the updated feasibility study in partnership with corridor counties and municipalities. The process should also involve CDOT, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, the Department of Natural Resources, Union Pacific, federal land managers, emergency responders, community organizations, and residents.

A renewed letter of intent between the State of Colorado and Union Pacific could establish the framework for this collaboration.

The approximately 178-mile Gypsum-to-Cañon City vision could create a regional trail spine connecting communities, public lands, river corridors, parks, trail systems, businesses, and historic sites.

Potential benefits include preserving an irreplaceable corridor, protecting the Eagle and Arkansas river headwaters, expanding healthy recreation, supporting rural businesses and tourism, interpreting Colorado history, and preserving future transportation options through railbanking.

Submit the Bicycle Colorado action alert, email Eagle County Commissioners and Governor Polis, ask other elected officials to support the planning process, contribute toward the $150,000 feasibility-study goal, and share the campaign with neighbors, community organizations, and local businesses.