List of Colorado railroads

A map of the United States of America with the State of Colorado highlighted.

This list of Colorado railroads identifies the variety of active, historic, and defunct railroads that operate in the U.S. State of Colorado.

Common freight carriers[]

Historic attraction carriers[]

Cripple Creek and Victor Narrow Gauge Railroad
Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad
Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
Fort Collins Municipal Railway
Georgetown Loop
Manitou and Pike's Peak Railway
Platte Valley Trolley (Denver Tramway Heritage Society)
Rio Grande Scenic Railroad
Royal Gorge Route Railroad
Leadville, Colorado and Southern Railroad (The South Park)

Private freight carriers[]

Deseret Western Railway

Passenger carriers[]

hide

Colorado rail stations

Legend

California Zephyr

to Chicago

Southwest Chief

to Chicago

Southwest Chief

to Los Angeles

Thornton Crossroads/104th

40th Ave & Airport Blvd–Gateway Park

Original Thornton/88th

Peoria

Commerce City/72nd

Central Park

48th & Brighton/

National Western Center

40th & Colorado

38th & Blake

Denver

60th & Sheridan/Arvada Gold Strike

Moffat Tunnel

California Zephyr

to Emeryville

Amtrak (AMTK)
RTD Rail

Defunct railroads[]

Ski Train

Name	Mark	System^[1]	From	To	Successor	Notes
Argentine Central Railway			1905	1912	Argentine and Gray's Peak Railway
Argentine and Gray's Peak Railway			1913	1918	N/A
		ATSF	1900	1907	Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
			1888	1893	Colorado Midland Railroad
			1880	1892
	none	AT&SF, CB&Q (BN), CRI&P, C&S (BN) and D&RGW	1953	1988	Regional Transportation District	Consortium formed to operate former Denver and Inter-Mountain Railroad line to the Denver Federal Center. Service provided alternately by C&S (BN) and D&RGW on behalf of the other owning railroads.
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad		ATSF	1873	1895	Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway	ATSF	ATSF	1895	1996	Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway
			1909	1920	N/A
Book Cliff Railroad			1899	1925	N/A
		CB&Q	1881	1908	Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
Burlington Northern Inc.	BN		1970	1981	Burlington Northern Railroad
Burlington Northern Railroad	BN		1981	1996	Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway
Busk Tunnel Railway			1890	1900	Colorado Midland Railway
Cadillac and Lake City Railway	CLK		1981	1989	N/A
		CB&Q	1889	1890	Union Pacific, Denver and Gulf Railway
			1897	1915	N/A
		ATSF	1877	1878
		DRGW	1872	1878	Denver and Rio Grande Railway
Central Kansas Railway	CKRY		1997	2001	Kansas and Oklahoma Railroad
Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad	CB&Q	CB&Q	1881	1970	Burlington Northern Inc.
Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railway		CB&Q	1901	1907	N/A	Leased the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway		RI	1888	1891	Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway
		RI	1888	1888	Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway
Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad	RI, ROCK	RI	1947	1980	Cadillac and Lake City Railway
Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway	RI	RI	1888	1948	Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad
		CB&Q	1889	1890	Union Pacific, Denver and Gulf Railway
		CB&Q	1871	1873	Colorado Central Railroad
			1938	1957	N/A
		CB&Q	1906	1930	Colorado and Southern Railway
Colorado Railway		DRGW	1883	1888	Denver and Rio Grande Railroad
Colorado Central Railroad		CB&Q	1869	1890	Union Pacific, Denver and Gulf Railway
Colorado Central and Pacific Railroad		CB&Q	1866	1869	Colorado Central Railroad
Colorado and Clear Creek Railroad		CB&Q	1865	1866	Colorado Central and Pacific Railroad
			1894	1915	N/A
			1888	1894
			1911	1932
	CKP		2000	2003	Towner Railway
Colorado Midland Railroad	CM		1917	1921	Midland Terminal Railway
Colorado Midland Railroad			1893	1897	Colorado Midland Railway
Colorado Midland Railway			1897	1917	Colorado Midland Railroad
Colorado Midland Railway			1883	1893	Colorado Midland Railroad
		ATSF	1873	1875
		CB&Q	1883	1884
			1904	1909
			1897	1904
		CB&Q	1861	1871
		CB&Q	1871	1872	Colorado Central Railroad
	C&SE		1909	1952	N/A
			1903	1909
Colorado and Southern Railway	C&S, CS	CB&Q	1898	1981	Burlington Northern Railroad
		DRGW	1888	1889
Colorado Springs and Cripple Creek District Railway	CCD		1899	1920	N/A
			1886	1892
		CB&Q	1887	1908	Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
Colorado, Wyoming and Eastern Railway		UP	1914	1924
Colorado, Wyoming and Great Northern Railroad			1894	1899	Book Cliff Railroad
			1915	1921	Midland Terminal Railway
			1897	1899	Colorado Springs and Cripple Creek District Railway
			1898	1941	N/A
			1892	1898
			1906	1941	N/A
			1886	1887
			1887	1888
Denver Railway	DRWY		1989	1993	Denver Rock Island Railroad
Denver and Boulder Valley Railroad		UP	1870	1898	Union Pacific Railroad
			1909	1919	N/A
		ATSF	1880	1886
		DRGW	1888	1899	Denver and Rio Grande Railroad
		CB&Q	1896	1899	Colorado and Southern Railway
		CB&Q	1881	1917	Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
Denver and Inter-Mountain Railroad	D&IM, DIM		1909	1953	Associated Railroads (AT&SF, CB&Q, CRI&P, C&S and D&RGW)	Electric after 1909
Denver and Inter-Mountain Railway			1904	1909	Denver and Inter-Mountain Railroad
Denver, Lakewood and Golden Railroad			1890	1904	Denver and Inter-Mountain Railway
			1917	1917	Great Western Railway of Colorado
			1910	1917
			1906	1910
Denver, Leadville and Gunnison Railway		CB&Q	1889	1898	Colorado and Southern Railway
		CB&Q	1881	1883
		CB&Q	1885	1890	Union Pacific, Denver and Gulf Railway
		CB&Q	1883	1890	Union Pacific, Denver and Gulf Railway
		CB&Q	1899	1908	Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
Denver and New Orleans Railroad		CB&Q	1881	1886
Denver, Northwestern and Pacific Railway		DRGW	1902	1913	Denver and Salt Lake Railroad
Denver Pacific Railway and Telegraph Company		UP	1867	1880	Union Pacific Railway
Denver and Rio Grande Railroad		DRGW	1886	1921	Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
Denver and Rio Grande Railway		DRGW	1870	1886	Denver and Rio Grande Railroad
Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad	D&RG, D&RGW, DRGW	DRGW	1920	1997	Union Pacific Railroad
Denver and Salt Lake Railroad	D&SL	DRGW	1912	1927	Denver and Salt Lake Railway
Denver and Salt Lake Railway	D&SL	DRGW	1926	1947	Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
		DRGW	1924	1947	Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
		ATSF	1887	1900	Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
		CB&Q	1896	1897	Denver, Leadville and Gunnison Railway
Denver, South Park and Pacific Railroad		CB&Q	1873	1889	Denver, Leadville and Gunnison Railway
Denver, South Park and Pacific Railway		CB&Q	1872	1873	Denver, South Park and Pacific Railroad
			1899	1904	(holding company)
Denver Terminal Railroad	DTMR		1986	1989	Denver Railway
		CB&Q	1885	1890	Union Pacific, Denver and Gulf Railway
Denver, Texas and Fort Worth Railroad		CB&Q	1887	1890	Union Pacific, Denver and Gulf Railway
Denver Union Railway and Terminal Company		UP	1889	1900	Union Pacific Railroad
	DUT	ATSF/ CB&Q/ DRGW/ RI/ UP	1912	2001	Regional Transportation District
		CB&Q	1880	1908	Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
		CB&Q	1880	1885
			1887	1898
Florence and Cripple Creek Railroad			1893	1915
		CB&Q	1902	1908
Fort Worth and Denver Railway	FWD	CB&Q	1981	1982	Burlington Northern Railroad
Georgetown, Breckenridge and Leadville Railway		CB&Q	1881	1890	Union Pacific, Denver and Gulf Railway
Gilpin Railroad		CB&Q	1909	1917	N/A
Gilpin Tramway Company		CB&Q	1886	1906	Gilpin Railroad
			1896	1915
		CB&Q	1870	1872	Colorado Central Railroad
			1872	1880	N/A
Grand Valley Railway		DRGW	1886	1887	Denver and Rio Grande Railroad
Greeley, Salt Lake and Pacific Railway		CB&Q	1881	1890	Union Pacific, Denver and Gulf Railway
			1909	1917	N/A
		ATSF	1906	1907	Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
			1908	1910
Kansas Pacific Railway		UP	1869	1880	Union Pacific Railway
Laramie, Hahns Peak and Pacific Railway		UP	1911	1914	Colorado, Wyoming and Eastern Railway
Laramie, North Park and Western Railroad		UP	1924	1951	Union Pacific Railroad
		UP	1907	1914	Colorado, Wyoming and Eastern Railway
		CB&Q	1898	1900	Colorado and Southern Railway
		DRGW	1880	1880	Denver and Rio Grande Railway
Little Book Cliff Railway			1889	1894	Colorado, Wyoming and Great Northern Railroad
			1882	1885
		CB&Q	1878	1881
Midland Terminal Railway	MTR		1892	1949	N/A
Missouri Pacific Railroad	MP	MP	1917	1997	Union Pacific Railroad
Missouri Pacific Railway		MP	1887	1917	Missouri Pacific Railroad
		CB&Q	1877	1881	Denver, South Park and Pacific Railroad
Nebraska, Kansas and Colorado RailNet	NKCR		1996	2005	Nebraska Kansas Colorado Railway
		UP	1924	1924	Laramie, North Park and Western Railroad
		DRGW	1927	1968	Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
		DRGW	1904	1927
Platt Valley Railway			1993	1993	Denver Rock Island Railroad
		ATSF	1875	1900	Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
		ATSF	1873	1875
		MP	1887	1910	Missouri Pacific Railway
		ATSF/ CB&Q/ DRGW/ MP/ RI	1887
Rio Grande Railroad		DRGW	1900	1908	Denver and Rio Grande Railroad
		DRGW	1891	1908	Denver and Rio Grande Railroad
		DRGW	1889	1947	Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
Rio Grande, Pagosa and Northern Railroad		DRGW	1899	1908	Denver and Rio Grande Railroad
			1895	1914	N/A
		DRGW	1902	1908	Denver and Rio Grande Railroad
		DRGW	1901	1908	Denver and Rio Grande Railroad
Rio Grande Southern Railroad		DRGW	1889	1951	N/A
Rio Grande Western Railway		DRGW	1889	1908	Denver and Rio Grande Railroad
		CB&Q	1889	1890	Union Pacific, Denver and Gulf Railway
		RI	1888	1888	Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway
			1909	1928
			1928	1953	Southern San Luis Valley Railroad
Silverton Railroad			1887	1904
			1904	1922	N/A
Silverton, Gladstone and Northerly Railroad			1899	1915	Silverton Northern Railroad
Silverton Northern Railroad			1895	1941	N/A
			1885	1900	N/A
Southern San Luis Valley Railroad	SSLV		1953	1996	N/A
State Line and Denver Railway		DRGW	1889	1889	Rio Grande Western Railway
	TRIN		1992			Still exists as a joint lessor of the BNSF Railway and Union Pacific Railroad
		DRGW	1886	1888	Denver and Rio Grande Railroad
		DRGW	1888	1899	Denver and Rio Grande Railroad
Uintah Railway			1903	1939	N/A
		ATSF/ CB&Q/ DRGW/ RI/ UP	1879	1899
		ATSF/ CB&Q/ DRGW/ RI/ UP	1899	1914
Union Pacific Railway		UP	1880	1898	Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railway, Eastern Division		UP	1866	1869	Kansas Pacific Railway
Union Pacific, Denver and Gulf Railway		CB&Q	1890	1898	Colorado and Southern Railway
		UP	1888	1898	N/A	Sold at foreclosure; no property in Colorado
		CB&Q	1907	1910

Electric

Colorado Springs and Cripple Creek District Railway (CCD)
Colorado Springs and Interurban Railway
Denver and Inter-Mountain Railroad (D&IM, DIM)
Denver and Inter-Mountain Railway
Denver, Lakewood and Golden Railroad
Florence and Cripple Creek Railroad
Fort Collins Municipal Railway
Metropolitan Railway
Midland Terminal Railway

References[]

^ This is one or more of the Class I railroads that the railroad became part of, if any.

Hilton, George W. (1990). American Narrow Gauge Railroads. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. ISBN 0-8047-2369-9.

External links[]

Coordinates: 38°59′50″N 105°32′52″W / 38.9972°N 105.5478°W / 38.9972; -105.5478 (State of Colorado)

[nb-1] This is one or more of the Class I railroads that the railroad became part of, if any.

[1]

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