FTA’s Peter Rogoff announces $304 million for Denver Union Station
Written by jrood
FTA Administrator Peter Rogoff announced federal funding for Denver Union Station, the centerpiece of the Regional Transportation District's FasTracks transit expansion plan. The Department of Transportation approved a $151.6-million Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) loan and a $152.1-million loan application under the Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing Program for Denver Union Station.
These loans, which
constitute 64 percent of the nearly half-billion-dollar project cost, will help
transform Denver Union Station into a true multi-modal transportation system,
connecting light rail, commuter rail, buses, streets and public spaces.
"Denver Union Station
will be a model of a seamless, interconnected system that joins transportation
options at one location," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.
"When completed, this regional multimodal hub will reinvigorate downtown
Denver and serve as an example of what we are trying to accomplish across the
country with our sustainability and livability goals."
In addition to the TIFIA
and RRIF loans, Denver Union Station has already received $28.4 million in
funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
"Together, our
multi-pronged federal investment in the Gold line, the East line and Denver
Union Station will mean huge mobility improvements for the people of Denver and
its suburbs," said Federal Transit Administrator Peter Rogoff. "The
loans are a great example of how critical federal funding can advance
transportation projects and create thousands of jobs that will have a big
impact in Colorado’s recovery."
The Denver Union Station
project is a 50-acre public-private development venture in lower downtown
Denver. The intermodal transit development project will serve as a regional
multimodal hub that will improve transportation and reduce congestion in the
downtown area. Transportation elements include an underground bus terminal with
22 bays, a light rail station for current and future light rail routes, a
commuter rail station that will serve Amtrak and possibly a ski train, and
public plazas to integrate transit service. Construction is estimated to take
four-years to complete.
The East Corridor and Gold
Line commuter rail lines are part of Regional Transportation District’s FasTracks
expansion program of major transit investments in the Denver region. These
projects, which were included in President Obama’s budget request to Congress,
will both feed into Denver Union Station,
By 2030 ridership is
expected to reach 43,400 weekday boardings with 11,450 daily new riders. The
total project cost is $479.4 million.
The project will be
implemented by the Denver Union Station Project Authority, a non-profit, public
benefit entity formed by the city in July 2008, through a partnership of RTD,
City and County of Denver, Colorado Department of Transportation and DUS
Metropolitan District. DUSPA is the applicant for the TIFIA and RRIF loans and
will receive various revenue streams to use both as security for the loans and
for funding construction. RTD will assist with the construction management of
the transit improvements and will own and operate the facilities after the
construction period.
The TIFIA and RRIF programs
provide Federal credit assistance in the form of direct loans, loan guarantees
and standby lines of credit to finance surface transportation projects of
national and regional significance and the development of railroad infrastructure.
These loan programs can help advance qualified, large-scale projects that
otherwise might be delayed or deferred because of size, complexity, or
uncertainty over the timing of revenues.
