Colorado needs the Front Range Passenger Rail, or CoCo, and we need it sooner rather than later. When I first championed the I-25 Gap Project in 2018, many naysayers said it couldn’t be done. The stretch of highway hadn’t seen a major upgrade since its initial construction in 1962. In fact, one prominent city leader said in a speech that, at best, the project was more than 10 years away.  

I thought that was unacceptable and set about working with key stakeholders to develop a plan to get it done. With the help of Governor John Hickenlooper, a federal grant program created by President Trump, and you, the voters of El Paso County, we were able to start and complete the project by 2024, well ahead of those decade-long projections. 

Here we are again today, working on CoCo, another visionary transportation project that will span that same gap between Colorado Springs and Denver, and communities far beyond. And today, we still have the same naysayers. Those who lack the vision to think big and do big things. But just like the I-25 Gap Project, we also have visionaries dedicated to finding creative and innovative solutions to meet our transportation needs. 

Something else said during discussions about the Gap Project was that, even though it would add significant capacity, we would never be able to build our way out of congestion. That’s the fundamental flaw in The Gazette’s editorial, “‘CoCo’ can’t repair Colorado’s crumbling roads.” Of course it can’t. CoCo was never designed to replace roads. It was designed to complement them by giving Coloradans another way to move between our growing communities. 

That is where CoCo comes in. For decades, we’ve put nearly all our focus on highways, while other parts of the world have built transportation systems with more than one way to get around. The difference is clear: systems with multiple options are more resilient, more flexible, and better able to handle growth. 

It takes just one incident – a crash, a storm, or a breakdown – to shut down a highway for hours. In just the first few months of this year, multi-vehicle accidents on I-25 and I-70 have left drivers stranded for hours at a time. 

And when that happens, the instinct is understandable: add more lanes. In some places, that helps. But over time, those lanes often fill back up. More capacity brings more cars, and before long, congestion returns. 

Transportation experts call it “induced demand.” When lanes are added, traffic may improve briefly. But over time, that new space fills up. More people drive, trips get longer, and development patterns shift. Before long, congestion returns, often worse than before. 

In addition, the rising costs of fuel, vehicle maintenance, and automobile insurance are making it increasingly difficult for families to meet their transportation needs. 

CoCo will provide diversified transportation options, ultimately connecting Pueblo to Fort Collins, and with the support of Colorado citizens, it will be here before we know it. 

Coloradans are looking for alternatives. Bustang ridership has surged in recent years, even though buses operate on the same roads as cars. People are choosing transit anyway because it gives them something roads alone can’t: options. The ability to work, read, or simply avoid the stress of driving. CoCo offers the same solution without being stuck in traffic. 

The naysayers claim we’ve been talking about this for years and that it will never get done. They argue that the only thing we’ll accomplish is taking focus away from our current crumbling highway infrastructure, causing us to fall even further behind. They also claim CoCo will siphon existing transportation dollars away from that same infrastructure. Neither argument is true. 

Planners within the Front Range Passenger Rail District have worked with freight railroads to develop a comprehensive Service Development Plan that utilizes existing rail infrastructure for CoCo at full buildout. That means providing service to Coloradans along the Front Range faster and more affordably than similar projects elsewhere in the country. In fact, this corridor is among the most advanced in the nation for passenger train service. 

In addition, through an innovative agreement with RTD, ticket revenue, and support from district voters, this project can be completed without cutting into existing transportation dollars. Simply put, there is a plan in place to get CoCo done while continuing to invest in road infrastructure. 

No doubt CoCo is a big project. But just like the Gap Project, with the right leadership, vision, and support from Colorado citizens, we can prove the naysayers wrong and get this done. 

Mark Waller served in the Colorado State Legislature from 2009 to 2015, and on the El Paso County Commission from 2016 to 2021.