[seventwenty]

North line faces construction delay of 18 months

Originally Posted by Denver Post

The Regional Transportation District is looking at an estimated 18-month construction delay for the North Metro Rail Line, officials say. The first phase of the project, including six of eight planned stations, was originally scheduled to open in the first quarter of 2018. The delay puts the opening in late 2019, though RTD officials will not commit to that time frame and have vowed to make up the time as best they can.

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The delay up north stems from a variety of complications in designing and building the 12.5 miles of track that will eventually carry electric, heavy-rail trains from Denver’s Union Station north to East 124th and Eastlake avenues in Thornton. RTD’s design-build contractor on the project is Regional Rail Partners.

The project is snagged over how it will impact the historic Riverside Cemetery at 5201 Brighton Blvd. RTD has proposed closing the cemetery’s existing entrance on Brighton and placing a new entrance off of Race Court.

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Cemetery officials say they want to keep the entrance as it is.

Meanwhile, RTD is building a nearly 2-mile-long bridge to carry the single-track line over York Street, existing rail road tracks and Interstate 270 in Commerce City. The so-called Skyway bridge also passes over a portion of the Suncor oil refinery.

But the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has deemed the refinery as important strategically, RTD’s Currey said, and mandated the agency add blinders on portions of the bridge so passengers can’t see down into the facility.