Rocky Mountain Rail Authority

RMRA High Speed Rail Feasibility Study Announcement - September 3, 2009

In recent days, you have likely seen media coverage about the Rocky Mountain Rail Authority’s (RMRA) High Speed Rail Feasibility Study. While we are pleased with the interest and response contained in these news stories, we want to take a moment to put them in context.

The RMRA’s study is scheduled for completion at the end of October. The study will identify whether or not a high-speed rail system in the I-25 and I-70 corridors is capable of meeting the Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) criteria for technical, economic and financial feasibility.

The study is analyzing numerous high-speed rail options comprised of various routes, vehicle technologies and stations.  To date, we have seen very promising results from our analysis.

It should be noted however that a feasibility study does not make any final decisions on technology, alignment or station location.  These decisions would be made in a subsequent study process guided by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and conducted by the Colorado Department of Transportation in conjunction with the appropriate federal regulatory agency. The RMRA feasibility study will recommend whether or not such additional study is warranted.

If a high-speed rail system is proven to be feasible in Colorado, the study will identify which of the evaluated options meet the FRA’s criteria and should be among the alternatives considered in future studies. It will also identify the immediate and long-term actions recommended for pursuing a high-speed rail system in Colorado.

The report will also include a sample financing and implementation plan to provide an example of how a high-speed rail system could operate. The sample plan would also outline a schedule for gaining required approvals, financing, designing and constructing the system.

In order to allow federal capital investment in a Colorado high speed rail system, the FRA needs to know whether or not the system can be operated at a profit and not require a government operating subsidy to supplement discounted fare collections.  This would allow the operation of the system to be franchised to a public-private entity which could make a profit in the operation of the high speed rail system. 

Given this, it is extremely likely that the infrastructure investment required for any high-speed rail system in Colorado could be majority funded by  federal funds with a much smaller portion coming from state/local funding and operate through a public-private partnership.

In order for high-speed rail in Colorado to become a reality, future studies will need to evaluate a full range of alternatives, their benefits/impacts and possible mitigation measures before one could be selected for implementation. However, our study is a very important step in the process of determining whether these future studies are warranted.

Thank you for your continued interest and involvement in the RMRA’s study.

Regards,

Rocky Mountain Rail Authority

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