It’s been a little over six months since The Front Page released part one of our docuseries covering the Front Range Passenger Rail.
In that time, the video has accumulated more than six thousand views on YouTube. Even more incredible are the 90-plus comments, almost all from local community members who engaged with the documentary and shared their views on local transportation.
Part two of the docuseries, published on March 25th, explores the logistics of what it actually takes to put people on trains and trains on tracks.
If this is your first time hearing of this documentary, or you simply want a refresher, let’s review what we covered in part one.
In June 2024, five Front Range Community College students – Julian Hanes, Jacob Brown, Morgan Treat, Catherine Schadegg, and I (Victoria Flores) – set off on a day-long trip from Fort Collins to Pueblo, using only public transportation and, on brief occasions, our legs.
We followed the proposed route for the passenger rail, hoping to see where the need for the rail was coming from.
Passengers along our route shared their feelings for both buses and trains. We got the full range of responses from a variety of riders: Daily commuters, first-time riders, and occasional riders.
The general consensus seemed to be that if there was going to be a train, it needed to be reliable, safe, and convenient.
In the second part of the documentary, we learn exactly what stands between Coloradoans and a passenger rail that meets those expectations.
Lucas Brady Woods, a KUNC state capitol and politics reporter, walked us through some of the required funding and how the state plans to generate some of that funding.
Colorado, along with Georgia, is leading the charge in developing transportation infrastructure, but that comes with its own set of challenges.
“It’s hard because we are defining the process also, as we go along,” said Andy Karsain, the former Front Range Passenger Rail General Manager
All of these concerns – funding, planning, and timelines – were among the 90 comments left on part one of the documentary.
Part two of the documentary is ready to answer your questions – and keep you entertained with some pretty snappy video editing, if I do say so myself.
