Street Cars are coming back!

Colfax Streetcar Feasibility Study

“Representative Diana DeGette announced that she has secured $1 million for critical transportation and infrastructure projects in the 1st Congressional District as part of the federal transportation funding package passed in early June. $500,000 was allocated to study the feasibility of a street car line on Colfax Avenue in East Denver. The study was requested by local businesses and the City of Denver to address heavy public transportation use and provide an important transportation alternative to the rapidly redeveloping urban corridor.”

What does this mean… well for those who don’t know most of Denver used to have rail lines everywhere. It was great, you just got to jump on a street car and go where you wanted.

Then, of course, we messed everything up. We ripped out the rail lines, paved over the streets, and turned our city over to the automobile. Before this happened, the Highland area was supposedly a map of rail lines. That is simply how our city grew.

Fortunately, Denver learns and is a progressive city. So now we are seeing the explosion of light and heavy rail across the city, the redevelopment of the Union Station Terminal, and now… streetcars may be making a comeback.

Rumor is the Mayor has money in his budget too and we may in the faaaaaaaaaaaaar future have a truly public transportation system across even more of our city.

Sell your car, pack a backpack, put on your shoes, and go truly urban in a walkable city.

On this one I don’t have many details. Anyone have any other news, thoughts, opinions, etc. Does anyone have the old streetcar map? Want to read about the history of Denver’s Streetcars.. here is one book.