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Test Track Set in Place on East Rail
Test track between Havana and Sand Creek in DenverConstruction on the airport line is moving right along, where overhead power line poles and a short segment of test track have been set between Havana Street and Sand Creek, next to Smith Road. In the photo above, you're looking west toward the Central Park Boulevard Bridge at Stapleton.
That piece of equipment on the right, some people might call it a track-making thing. But it does have a more sophisticated, technical name.
It's called a Dynamic Track Stabilizer. It is used to tamp down and pack the concrete ties into the rock ballast, using vibration as well as pressure to set them evenly both horizontally and vertically to ensure a smooth ride.
Watch part of the Peña Rail Bridge go up in just 2:00
As part of the construction of the RTD FasTracks East Rail Line, Denver Transit Partners crews set the girders over westbound (outbound) Peña Boulevard on Saturday, March 23, 2013.
On Monday, March 25, 2013, DTP crews set the girders within the Peña Boulevard median. The girders were placed over eastbound Peña Boulevard on Saturday, April 6, 2013. At approximately 1,952 feet long, the Peña Boulevard bridge has 17 spans and crosses over Peña Boulevard, near East 75th Avenue.
Watch it happen really fast thanks to the magic of time lapse and some music.
Video: Eagle Project Progress Spring 2013
This new video shows you just how much progress is being made on the new East Line from Denver Union Station to Denver International Airport, as well as the other projects that are part of Eagle P3.
Google Maps Discovers the East Rail Line
Updated aerial photography from October 2012 shows construction
Stonehenge? No, it's the East Rail Line's Peña Boulevard Bridge under construction, in an aerial overflight from Oct. 7, 2012, posted by Google
Google has updated the aerial imagery that it uses in its Google Maps Satellite View and on its Google Earth application, giving fans of the project a look back into the near past at our progress on the East Rail Line project at Denver International Airport.
The new imagery is from Oct. 7, 2012. It shows bridge construction and alignment grading over the entire 11 miles of the Peña Boulevard segment of the 23-mile line. You can follow our work from what we call the "Triple Stack Underpass" south of the Denver International Airport's Jeppesen Terminal, where our trains will pass underneath the east and west terminal roadway crossover.
From there, headed west, you will see:
- The track alignment between Runway 7/25 and 78th Avenue
- A dozen support piers for the 1,953-foot Peña Bridge, all north of Peña Boulevard (the beams connecting them are all installed and we're working in the median and south side now)
- Start of work over E-470 -- now ready for setting of bridge beams
- Concrete drainage culverts to allow storm runoff to go under the tracks
- The beginning of alignment grading from west of Tower Road down to Green Valley Ranch Boulevard
- Bridge piers for the First Creek and the 56th Avenue commuter rail bridges.
Google satellite view imagery from Oct. 7, 2012, shows the commuter rail alignment, here running left to right, headed into the Triple Stack Underpass at Denver International Airport. View is looking toward the west.
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The Once and Future Tracks:
East Rail Line Unearths Old Denver Trolley Tracks
Construction of the FasTracks train to Denver International Airport turned up a hidden piece of Denver's transit history when work crews closed 40th Avenue in November.
Denver Transit Partners, RTD's contractor on the East Rail Line, pulled up the asphalt on Walnut Street and 40th to get started on a year and a half of work (see item below for details of the work). But the first few digs uncovered a link between the East Rail Line and Denver's old streetcar network.
A few inches below the paving, the trolley tracks of Denver Tramway's former Route 61 streetcar lay caked in mud. The 61 streetcar ran from 40th Avenue and High Street through downtown on Larimer Street and out on West Colfax Avenue to the city line at Sheridan Boulevard. The last time steel wheels ran over these rails, it was June 1950. The rails are narrower than standard -- Tramway ran on a unique 42-inch gauge track.
Tramway shut down all trolley service in June 1950 as diesel buses came to dominate the fleet. RTD took over Tramway's assets from the City and County of Denver in 1974. We're still finding some of those "hidden" assets today!
Watch a slideshow of the 40th Avenue trolley tracks. After starting, expand to full screen and click on "Show Info" for captions.
40th Avenue Closed for up to 16 Months
40th Avenue Fact Sheet Printable PDF
The Regional Transportation District's contractor for the East Rail Line has closed 40th Avenue between Blake and York streets for full reconstruction. The closure began Nov. 28, 2012.
For up to 16 months, Denver Transit Partners will install the commuter rail alignment along the north side of the street, place new drainage lines underground and rebuild the street in concrete including eight-foot sidewalks on the south side.
The public is asked to comply with instructions on posted construction signs and to use alternate routes to bypass the area. RTD's Route 44 bus line will operate on 37th Avenue and York Street through the construction area only.
Construction schedules are subject to change. In the event of after-hour emergencies, call 1-855-EAGLE P3 (324-5373). For additional construction information, or if you have questions, please contact the DTP Public Information Team at 303-297-5284.
For online project information including construction and traffic detours, go to: www.rtd-fastracks.com/ep3_26.
Here is a map of the Route 44 bus detour:
See a larger version of this map here.
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Construction Moves onto Denver International Airport
Construction began in June 2012 on the 1,953-foot bridge that will carry the commuter rail over Peña Boulevard. Work started on the north side of the highway with caissons and piers that will support the massive structure. See slideshows of the work at the airport. ----------
Peoria Crossing Project
The City and County of Denver, City of Aurora and theRegional Transportation District (RTD) are sponsoring a study to determine how to make improvements to the crossing of Peoria Street with the Union Pacific Railroad and the East Rail Line. It is called Peoria Crossing. The purpose is to improve safety and travel reliability, and reduce traffic backups at the rail crossing.
The recommended alternative was presented at a public meeting on March 6, 2012, and depicted a Peoria overpass slightly west of the current road alignment. The study is anticipated to be completed in mid-2012, and if approved, construction of improvements would be completed in late 2014.
Another public meeting was held May 8 to show refinements made to the recommended alternative.
The project is not a component of the FasTracks East Rail Line, but would be done concurrently with RTD's work to build the airport train through the Peoria Street crossing.
For more information visit the project website or contact the Project Manager, Tykus Holloway, at 720-913-8812.
