CO: In RTD experiment, temporary ‘Holiday Train’ will run from I-25 through downtown Denver to Five Points

Regional Transportation District officials soon will launch temporary light rail service linking RTD’s I-25/ Broadway station with 30th/Downing in Five Points through the central downtown corridor, with trains running every 15 minutes.

The service, running from Nov. 28 through Jan. 3, will mark a resumption of the downtown and Welton Street rail transit that has been disrupted since May 2024 for track maintenance.

An 86-day project to reconstruct the intersection of Kalamath Street and West Colfax Avenue — part of a multiyear $152 million RTD reconstruction of downtown track — has been completed, enabling the temporary “Holiday Train” service, agency officials announced Monday afternoon. The temporary trains will run from the day after Thanksgiving through the New Year’s holiday.

On Jan. 4, the currently diverted D-Line, shortened H-Line and suspended L-Line will resume their normal routes, officials said. The D-Line service has been rerouted to Denver Union Station instead of the Central Business District during the track work, while the H-Line has ended at Southmoor Station.

“Maintaining RTD’s infrastructure is essential to preserving previous investments that were made in the region’s mass transportation system,” RTD chief executive and general manager Debra Johnson said in a statement announcing the temporary service during the holidays.

Public transportation advocates lauded the temporary trains from I-25 through downtown as a possibly permanent step toward a broad overhaul of routes that they have recommended to try to revive RTD’s lagging ridership. The L-Line’s normal route doesn’t go south of downtown.

“We welcome RTD’s experimentation with making rail routes more useful to riders,” Greater Denver Transit co-founder James Flattum said. “GDT would like to see the Welton Corridor connected to regional rail service once again.”

Starting Nov. 28, Denver riders will be able to take the trains linking I-25/ Broadway and Five Points in addition to the following options:

• D-Line trains will still run to Denver Union Station, where riders can connect to the downtown loop using the 16th Street FreeRide or Free MetroRide. The D-Line trains will run at 15-minute frequencies between Littleton/ Mineral in southwest metro Denver and Denver Union Station.
• H-Line trains will run between RTD’s Florida and Southmoor stations. Riders headed downtown will need to transfer to an E-Line train. The E and H lines will run at 15-minute frequencies to support cross-platform transfers at Southmoor Station.
• L-Line trains between Five Points and downtown will remain suspended. RTD’s Route 43 bus will be available for riders headed downtown.
• The Route 16 bus and Route ART bus will provide alternate service to RTD’s Colfax/Auraria Station.

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