4 Ekim 2010 Pazartesi

Ski Train MIGHT Be Back on Track

San Luis & Rio Grande operator reportedly considering operating Ski Train

Mountain bikers heading for the Winter Park-Fraser area trail system have missed summer operations of the Ski Train from Denver this year, and skiers were already mourning its disappearance after 69 years of operations when owner Phil Anschutz sold the rolling stock to a Canadian operator a few months ago. Now, the Denver Post reports, there is a glimmer of hope on the Ski Train horizon.

In a piece called "Colorado Ski Train Revival Gathers Steam," reporter Jeffrey Leib reported that the Iowa Pacific Holdings LLC, which owns southern Colorado's Alamosa-based San Luis & Rio Grande Railroad and Rio Grande Scenic Railroad, could take over the route. Although it is "premature" to hope this might happen, Edwin Ellis, Iowa Pacific president, did indicate to authoritiex that his company "can provide all services necessary for the Winter Park train, [including] railcars and locomotives, onboard services, reservations and ticketing, sales and marketing, and administration."

In his front-page story in the Post's business section, Leib wrote, "Any new operator of the Denver-to-Winter Park route will have to get permission from Union Pacific, which owns the track and operates freight trains in the corridor. UP has an office that coordinates with Amtrak and other passenger-rail ventures that want to use its track, yet that office 'has not been contacted regarding the re-establishment of the train,' Union Pacific spokesman Mark Davis said Tuesday. Doing so 'is the key to beginning the process of seeing if it is even feasible to re-establish the Ski Train,' Davis said."

I rode the Ski Train near the end of last ski season and mourned the news of its demise just a few weeks later. Count me as one of those hoping that the Ski Train will be back on track for the 2009-10 season.

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