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Winter Park Express
Denver-bound Winter Park Express in March 2022
Overview
Service typeInter-city rail
StatusSeasonal (January–March)
LocaleColorado
First service1940; 84 years ago (1940)
Current operator(s)Amtrak
Former operator(s)Rio Grande
Annual ridership16,209 (FY 2023)[1]
Websiteamtrak.com/winter-park-express
Route
TerminiDenver, Colorado
Winter Park Resort, Colorado
Distance travelled56 miles (90 km)
Average journey time2 hours, 5 minutes[2]
Service frequencyFriday, Saturday, Sunday
Train number(s)1105 (westbound)
1106 (eastbound)
Line(s) usedUP Central Corridor
On-board services
Class(es)Coach Class
Disabled accessTrain lower level, all stations
Catering facilitiesCafé
Observation facilitiesSightseer lounge car
Baggage facilitiesOverhead racks, dedicated storage for skis
Technical
Rolling stockGE Genesis
Superliner
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Operating speed27 mph (43 km/h)
Route map
Legend
California Zephyr to Emeryville
62 mi
100 km
 Fraser–Winter Park
California
Zephyr only
 "The Lift" buses
56 mi
90 km
 Winter Park Resort
Winter Park
Express only
Moffat Tunnel
California Zephyr to Chicago
0 mi
0 km
 Denver Union Station
Key
 Winter Park Express
"The Lift" buses
California Zephyr
This diagram:

The Winter Park Express is a passenger train operated by Amtrak on winter weekends between Denver Union Station and Winter Park Resort, Colorado. The scenic 56-mile (90 km) route uses the same line as the California Zephyr, climbing 4,000 feet (1,200 m) into the Front Range and passing through 30 tunnels—including the historic 6.2-mile (10.0 km) Moffat Tunnel under the Continental Divide—before dropping passengers within 100 yards (91 m) of Winter Park's ski lifts. Trains run on Friday, Saturday and Sunday from January to March.

The route, formerly known as the Ski Train was started by the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad (better known simply as the Rio Grande) when the ski area opened in 1940. Ansco Investment Company ran the Ski Train from 1988 to March 2009, when service was canceled due to mounting costs. Amtrak revived the route in January 2017, after several sold-out special event trains in 2015 showed popular demand.

History

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1940–1988: Rio Grande operation

[edit]

The Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad started the Ski Train in 1940.

There was one trip in each direction per day, with a travel time of 2 hours and 15 minutes, assuming no delays from freight rail traffic.

In the 1960s, 22-car trains to Winter Park were regularly moving an estimated 1,800 passengers, many of them young, unsupervised and sometimes rowdy. On one trip, a youngster pulled the emergency brake on a moving train, damaging one coach's coupler and steam line. After the incident, the railroad hired three sheriff's deputies to patrol the train.[3][4]

At least during the early 1970s, the train made a stop in the Rocky Flats area.[5]

1988–2009: Ansco Investment Company operation

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Ski Train at Tabernash, Colorado, 2003
Ski Train at Denver Union Station, 2003

In 1988 the operation was sold to Ansco Investment Company, which made various needed improvements and ran the “New Ski Train” for two decades under the reporting mark SKTX.[6]

In this era the Ski Train consisted of three locomotives pulling fourteen cars: eight coaches, three club cars, two cafe lounge cars, and one retreat car. The train accommodated 750 passengers.[4][7]

On January 21, 2006, the return trip was canceled after a coal train derailment blocked the line, leaving some 700 passengers stuck in Winter Park. Buses were summoned to provide return transportation to Denver, and refunds offered to those who made alternate arrangements.[8][9] Just two months later, on March 19, another freight train derailment delayed the return Ski Train for almost six hours, with the train arriving in Denver around midnight.[10]

In 2007, a blizzard forced cancellation of service on December 29 and 30.[11]

The Ski Train made its final run to Winter Park on March 29, 2009. It had been burdened with escalating costs such as liability insurance coverage, operational conflicts with freight traffic, and substantial uncertainties posed by the redevelopment of Denver's Union Station. Combined with the global financial crisis, it was no longer feasible to operate the Ski Train.

The equipment was sold to the Algoma Central Railway, a subsidiary of Canadian National Railway. Ironically, the Ski Train's cars had been originally built in 1968 by Hawker Siddeley for use on CN's Tempos. The F40PH locomotives and most passenger cars were refurbished and repainted to Algoma Central's livery and are now in use on the railway's Agawa Canyon tourist train.[12]

2009: Iowa Pacific Holdings revival bid

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Iowa Pacific Holdings (IPH), a holding company that owned railroad properties across North America and the United Kingdom (including San Luis & Rio Grande in southern Colorado), made a bid to revive the Ski Train using idle equipment from SL&RG's subsidiary, Rio Grande Scenic Railroad.[13][14] Plans fell through due to Amtrak, who would be supplying staff, classifying the Ski Train as a commuter operation instead of an excursion train, resulting in higher liability insurance.[15] Iowa Pacific sued Amtrak, with Amtrak agreeing to settle the matter on December 23, 2009, five days prior to the first day operations were to commence (December 27), with a payment to Iowa Pacific. Full refunds were made by IPH to customers who purchased tickets.

2015–present: Amtrak Winter Park Express

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Winter Park Express at the resort, 2018

In February 2015, Amtrak, Winter Park Resort and the Union Pacific Railroad announced that a special one-day-only "Winter Park Express" train would run on Saturday, March 14, in celebration of the 75th anniversary of Winter Park. With tickets priced at $75, all 400 seats sold out within 12 hours.[16][17][18] By popular demand, a second train was added for Sunday, March 15, and it also sold out quickly.[19]

Winter Park Express Leaving Moffat Tunnel and entering Winter Park 2024
The Winter Park Express exiting the Moffat Tunnel in 2024

With demonstrated enthusiasm for the excursion train, there were renewed hopes that the Ski Train would again operate seasonally from the recently redeveloped Denver Union Station public transit complex.[20][21][22] In April, Amtrak and Winter Park officials met to begin work on a proposal to track owner Union Pacific for running at least two trips weekly between January and March 2016.[23] Ultimately the negotiations were unable to make the service happen in 2016, but all groups continued to meet into the new year.[24][25]

In August 2016, Amtrak and its partners announced regular Winter Park Express weekend service from January through March 2017.[26][27] In its first full season, the Winter Park Express ran 25 trips and saw 18,000 passengers, about 30% of which were non-skiers.[28] The train suffered one major service disruption on March 11, 2017, when a freight train derailment forced the cancellation of the Saturday run.[29][30]

After a successful first season, expanded service was announced for the 2017–18 season, including first-Friday round trips and lower ticket prices for some departures.[31] Amtrak added a Superliner Sightseer lounge and café car to the train for the 2018–19 season, featuring food and drink service along with floor-to-ceiling views. This upgrade had been the "biggest request" from riders.[32] For the 2019–20 season, Winter Park's 80th, service was added on every Friday.[33][34]

In March 2020, the Winter Park Express was suspended during a round of Amtrak service reductions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.[35] The train did not run in the 2021 season. Amtrak reported total ridership of nearly 70,000 from the train's introduction in 2017 through to the 2020 service suspension.[36]

In November 2021, Amtrak and Winter Park Resort announced that service would return for the 2022 season. The train ran on its 2019 schedule, with Friday, Saturday, and Sunday service from mid-January through early April.[37][38]

The 2023 season ran for eleven weekends starting on January 13, for 33 total round trips.[39] The 2024 season is scheduled to run weekends from January 12 to March 31, plus two Thursdays, for a total of 40 round trips.[40]

Future plans

[edit]

In June 2021, Colorado created a district to advance Front Range Passenger Rail, a proposed train service between Pueblo, Colorado Springs, Denver, Boulder, and Fort Collins.[41] The legislation specifically calls for interconnectivity with the Winter Park Express.[42] Rail advocates have seen the Winter Park Express as a springboard for building interest in Front Range service.[28]

In September 2023, local officials expressed interest in extending the Winter Park Express to Steamboat Springs to connect more ski resorts. In addition to tourist service, regular commuter rail is proposed between Winter Park, State Bridge, Bond, Yampa, Oak Creek, Steamboat Springs, Hayden, and Craig, with a spur to Yampa Valley Regional Airport. The proposal aims to capitalize on increased line capacity due to a reduction in coal and oil transport.[43]

Route

[edit]
Winter Park Express stopped at the resort, just past the Moffat Tunnel west portal, January 2018

The Winter Park Express runs from Union Station in Denver, Colorado, for 56 miles (90 km) to Winter Park Resort in the town of Winter Park. There are no intermediate stops. Heading west from Denver, the train climbs 3,960 feet (1,210 m) up the Front Range via a series of 29 tunnels—the "Tunnel District"—through the Plainview, Crescent, Wondervu and Gross Reservoir areas, then generally west along South Boulder Creek through Pinecliffe, Tolland and Rollinsville to the final mountain underpass, the 6.2-mile (10.0 km) long Moffat Tunnel under the Continental Divide. This is the highest railroad tunnel in the United States and the third-longest, after the Cascade Tunnel in Washington state and the Flathead Tunnel in Montana.

On weekdays and during the off-season, riders can still reach Winter Park via Amtrak's long-distance California Zephyr. This daily train follows the same route from Denver but does not stop directly at Winter Park Resort's platform. Instead, riders can disembark several miles down the track at Fraser–Winter Park station, where transit buses operated by the city's "The Lift" service connects to the resort. Travelers thus have two train options to travel between Denver and Winter Park on days when the Winter Park Express is running.[36]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Amtrak Fact Sheet, Fiscal Year 2023: State of Colorado" (PDF). Amtrak. March 2024. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
  2. ^ "Amtrak - Reservations - Select Train", Amtrak, retrieved February 8, 2024. Average the westbound travel time of 2 hours, 0 minutes and the eastbound travel time of 2 hours, 10 minutes.
  3. ^ "The Winter Park Ski Train" (PDF). Colorado Ski Museum. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 13, 2017. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
  4. ^ a b Masia, Seth. "Ski Trains: A History". skiinghistory.org. International Skiing History Association. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
  5. ^ "All aboard for future of Winter Park Ski Train service". SkyHiDailyNews.com. March 20, 2015.
  6. ^ "Railroad Reporting Marks -- S". www.pwrr.org. Piedmont and Western Railroad Club. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
  7. ^ "The Winter Park Ski Train". Visit Winter Park, Colorado. December 2, 2015. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  8. ^ "URGENT ADVISORY". May 27, 2006. Archived from the original on May 27, 2006.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  9. ^ "DRGW.NET - Rio Grande News Archives from January 2006".
  10. ^ "Rocky Mountain News: Local". March 20, 2006. Archived from the original on March 20, 2006.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  11. ^ "Colorado Ski Train Opens 2006 Season". December 29, 2006.
  12. ^ "Agawa Canyon tour train to be refurbished, repainted". Trains Magazine. November 17, 2010 – via Michigan Association of Railroad Passengers.
  13. ^ Leib, Jeffrey (September 18, 2009). "All are aboard plan to revive Ski Train runs". The Denver Post.
  14. ^ Leib, Jeffrey (August 5, 2009). "Colorado Ski Train revival gathers steam". The Denver Post.
  15. ^ Leib, Jeffrey (December 29, 2009). "Problems derail revival of Ski Train". The Denver Post.
  16. ^ "Tickets sell out for train from Denver to Winter Park". 9News. Associated Press. February 26, 2015. Archived from the original on February 27, 2015.
  17. ^ Stanley, Deb (February 25, 2015). "Winter Park Ski Train returns - for 1 day - through partnership with Amtrak". 7News Denver.
  18. ^ Blevins, Jason (February 25, 2015). "Amtrak revives Ski Train for one day to celebrate Winter Park's 75th". The Denver Post.
  19. ^ Paul, Jesse (March 3, 2015). "Amtrak adds second Winter Park Ski Train trip from Denver". The Denver Post.
  20. ^ Blevins, Jason (March 3, 2015). "2nd Ski Train sells out in 4 hours, stirs hope of Denver-to-Winter Park rail service revival". The Denver Post.
  21. ^ Herbert, Kiran (March 3, 2015). "All Aboard the Winter Park Express". 5280.com. Archived from the original on March 11, 2015. Retrieved March 13, 2015.
  22. ^ Biolsi, Peter (March 5, 2015). "All Aboard! Winter Park & Amtrak Revive Ski Train for Celebratory Journey". On The Snow. Archived from the original on March 15, 2015. Retrieved March 14, 2015.
  23. ^ "Ski Train revival in the works after two sell-out weekends". The Denver Post. April 20, 2015. Archived from the original on June 25, 2022. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  24. ^ "Winter Park Ski Train: 'We're Still Working On It'". Archived from the original on November 14, 2015. Retrieved November 11, 2015.
  25. ^ "Winter Park Ski Train Unlikely To Return This Season, Says Resort". Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 22, 2015.
  26. ^ "Amtrak, Union Pacific and Winter Park offer weekend Ski Train service between Denver and Grand County ski area". August 24, 2016. Retrieved August 24, 2016.
  27. ^ "Special Weekend Train to Winter Park Resort". Amtrak. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  28. ^ a b Garvey, John (June 4, 2017). "How the Ski Train got back on track". ColoradoBiz. Retrieved January 19, 2022.
  29. ^ "Winter Park Express canceled Saturday because of freight train derailment". The Denver Post. March 11, 2017.
  30. ^ "Winter Park Express service canceled Saturday". KUSA. March 11, 2017.
  31. ^ "Amtrak adds three Friday round-trips, reduced fares to Winter Park Express Ski Train for 2018". August 24, 2017.
  32. ^ Renoux, Matt (January 4, 2019). "Winter Park Express now features lounge car with food, drink service". 9News. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  33. ^ "Amtrak Winter Park Express 2020 tickets now available". Winter Park Times. October 10, 2019. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
  34. ^ "The Winter Park Express is Back and Launching its 2020 Season - Colorado Ski Country USA". www.coloradoski.com. December 20, 2019. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
  35. ^ "Service Adjustments Due to Coronavirus" (Press release). Amtrak. March 24, 2020. Archived from the original on March 25, 2020. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  36. ^ a b "Amtrak Winter Park Express Back for the 2022 Winter Season". Amtrak. November 9, 2021. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  37. ^ Harford, McKenna (November 9, 2021). "Winter Park Express to return for 2022 season". Sky-Hi News. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  38. ^ "Amtrak Winter Park Express returns". KUSA.com. November 9, 2021. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
  39. ^ "Tickets go on sale for 2023 season of Amtrak's Winter Park Express". Trains. November 30, 2022. Retrieved November 30, 2022.
  40. ^ Jarpe, Samantha (December 4, 2023). "Winter Park Express returns in January 2024". FOX31 Denver. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  41. ^ Luczak, Marybeth (July 1, 2021). "Report: Front Range Passenger Rail Moving Forward". Railway Age. Retrieved November 24, 2021.
  42. ^ Gray, Matt; Esgar, Daneya; Zenzinger, Rachel; Garcia, Leroy. "SB21-238 Create Front Range Passenger Rail District". Colorado General Assembly. Retrieved January 19, 2022.
  43. ^ Weinberg, Harrison (September 26, 2023). "Colorado officials reshuffle Moffat Tunnel least team as passenger rail push accelerates". coloradonewsline.com. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
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