W Line (RTD)

The Denver, Lakewood and Golden Railroad started operations in the area in 1893, switching to electric traction by 1909 as the Denver and Intermountain Railroad. The route ran from the downtown Denver interurban loop, along Lakewood Gulch and 13th Avenue, continuing out to Golden. Interurban service continued until 1950, when all Denver area trolley and interurban service ceased.^[4]

Plans to resurrect a railway line from Denver to Golden were advanced in the mid-1970s and in the 1980s RTD purchased the right-of-way to an unused rail corridor between the two cities.^[5] A study conducted in 1997 stated the need for a rapid transit corridor through the region, and settled on 13th Avenue as the locally preferred alternative. An environmental impact statement was started in 2001 and finished with a record of decision in 2004.^[6] A "rail-pulling" ceremony was held on the 13th Avenue corridor on May 16, 2007, and construction started in earnest in early 2008.^[7]

As project costs climbed above the initial estimates, cuts were made, including reducing the line from a double track to a single-track operation from west of the Federal Center Station to the end of the line at the Jefferson County Government Center.^[8]

The first full test run of the line happened on January 3, 2013, in anticipation of the official opening, April 26, 2013, eight months ahead of schedule.^[9]

The western terminus of the W Line is at Jefferson County Government Center–Golden station in Golden. The line continues east along U.S. Route 6 before briefly dipping south to the Denver Federal Center, where the line expands from single-track to double-track. The single-track section limits headways to no better than every 15 minutes over that section of the line.^[10] From there, the line then curves back north along the Remington spur before returning east, following 13th Avenue at the Lakewood Industrial Park at Oak station. At Lamar station, the line runs along Lakewood Gulch, before it crosses over the South Platte River and under Interstate 25 then over the UP/BNSF consolidated mainline on a new bridge, turning north then crossing under U.S. Route 40/U.S. Route 287 (Colfax Avenue), before entering the Central Platte Valley Corridor (CPV). It runs north along this corridor on the west side of Downtown Denver, merging with the E Line, stopping at stations at Auraria West Campus, Empower Field at Mile High, and Ball Arena-Elitch Gardens before terminating at the Union Station light rail plaza.

The W Line is the first light rail route in metro Denver to make extensive use of gated grade crossings within its right-of-way (there were only four such grade crossings on the previously existing network). Some of the route goes through residential areas and concerns about noise led to an innovative solution for the warning system at crossing gates. The warning bells will adjust their volume in response to the ambient noise resulting in 50-70 dB during the evening hours compared to the standard volume of 90-100 dB.^[5]

Four stations along the route were in use previously, including the Auraria West station which was relocated approximately 300 feet (91 m) to the north, and eleven new stations were built for the line.^[11][12]

More information Station, Municipality ...

Station	Municipality	Opened	Major connections & notes
Jefferson County Government Center–Golden	Golden	April 26, 2013	Park and ride: 705 spaces
Red Rocks College	Lakewood
Federal Center			Park and ride: 1,000 spaces
Oak			Park and ride: 200 spaces
Garrison
Lakewood–Wadsworth			Park and ride: 1,000 spaces
Lamar
Sheridan	Denver/Lakewood		Park and ride: 800 spaces
Perry	Denver
Knox
Decatur–Federal			Park and ride: 1,900 spaces
Auraria West		April 5, 2002
Empower Field at Mile High
Ball Arena–Elitch Gardens
Union Station			California Zephyr MallRide

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