WHAT WOULD THE IMPACT OF BRINGING TRAINS BACK TO TENNESSEE PASS BE?

The last trains ran through this special landscape and the surrounding communities in 1997. There are not many around who remember the impact of those trains, and the valley has changed significantly since then. We believe that converting this short, steep, expensive to maintain & operate section from Leadville to Minturn to trail use through railbanking is the best approach that preserves the right of way for public benefit through a proven, established process. This would allow downhill communities the possibility to continue to engage with the railway on possible uses through those communities.

Interested in what past rail use looked like on Tennessee Pass? A YouTube search brings recordings to life of what the past baseline looked like, as it does what the future could bring.

Train roars Through Tennessee Pass in 1992

Train roars Through Tennessee Pass in 1992

Train screeches through Camp Hale. Soldiers in the 1940's often came down with respiratory ailments due to the smoke from trains settling in the low alpine valley.

Train screeches through Camp Hale. Soldiers in the 1940's often came down with respiratory ailments due to the smoke from trains settling in the low alpine valley.

Train exiting tunnel on East Side of Tennessee Pass near popular ski and nordic area and 10th Mountain Memorial

Train exiting tunnel on East Side of Tennessee Pass near popular ski and nordic area and 10th Mountain Memorial

Passenger rail requires speed, low cost, and frequency to be successful - not to mention dedicated lines without shared freight traffic. None of this is currently feasible on Tennessee Pass's steep and curving route in between Minturn and Leadville.

Passenger rail requires speed, low cost, and frequency to be successful - not to mention dedicated lines without shared freight traffic. None of this is currently feasible on Tennessee Pass's steep and curving route in between Minturn and Leadville.