Colorado Pacific Railroad

Short line railroad

Not to be confused with Colorado Pacific Rio Grande Railroad, also owned by the Soloviev Group.

Colorado Pacific Railroad

One of the railroad's locomotives

Overview
Parent company| The Soloviev Group
Headquarters| Eads, Colorado
Reporting mark| CXR
Locale| Colorado
Dates of operation| 2020-Present
Predecessor| Missouri Pacific, Union Pacific
Technical
Track gauge| 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Length| 122 miles (196 km)
Other
Website| https://coloradopacificrailroad.com/

The Colorado Pacific Railroad is a shortline railroad operating on 122 miles (196 km) of former Missouri Pacific Railroad trackage in southeast Colorado. It interchanges with Union Pacific and BNSF at North Avondale Junction near Boone, and with the Kansas and Oklahoma Railroad at Towner. It is sometimes referred to as the Towner Line or the Towner Railway.

## History

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The line was constructed in the late 1880s by the Missouri Pacific Railroad as part of its mainline between Pueblo and Kansas City. As a condition of the 1982 Missouri Pacific - Union Pacific merger, the Denver & Rio Grande Western got trackage rights over this line. The D&RGW merged with the Southern Pacific in 1992. In 1996, Union Pacific Merged with Southern Pacific, and the line became redundant in UP's system. The Surface Transportation Board approved the abandonment as part of the merger.[1][2][3]

The Colorado Department of Transportation purchased the line from UP in 1998 for $10.2 million in hopes of finding a short-line operator to serve farmers and others in small towns along the route.[4] In 2000, CDOT leased the line to the Colorado, Kansas & Pacific Railway. In 2004, the lease was transferred to V&S Railway.[5] However, V&S ownership appeared to locals as intent on scrapping the railroad for immediate cash, and freight tonnage began to decrease.[3]

### Soloviev Group Ownership

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Real estate magnate Stefan Soloviev's Crossroads Agriculture began operating in the area in 2007, and became interested in the railroad line when learning about V&S's intention to scrap it. He decided to purchase the line to facilitate grain transportation at lower costs.[6] Upon discovering Soloviev's intentions, in 2014 V&S began preparing the line to be scrapped by removing tie spikes and anchors, but this was problematic as they had not yet revieced legal approval from the STB to formally abandon the line. Soloviev asked the STB to force the sale of the railroad. His request was granted, and the sale took place in 2016.[3][7][8]

Over the following years, rehabilitation took place and railroad operations gradually resumed, with plans to expand service as new infrastructure is completed.[9][10]

## Rolling stock

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The railroad owns two EMD SD40-2s, painted blue and prominently displaying the Colorado Pacific logo.[11] In 2024, four SD70MACs were delivered from the Colorado Pacific Rio Grande shops in Alamosa, Colorado.

## References

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1. ^ "Towner Railroad: status/future?". Retrieved December 24, 2022.
2. ^ Surface Transportation Board Decision (PDF) (Report). Surface Transportation Board. January 26, 1998. Docket No. AB-3 (Sub-No. 130). Retrieved December 24, 2022.
3. ^ a b c Waggoner, Priscilla (February 14, 2018). "'I Hear That Train A-Comin'...' The Story Behind the Story". Kiowa County Independent. Retrieved December 24, 2022.
4. ^ Miniclier, Kit (April 27, 2000). "Towner Rail Line revs up for the real thing". The Denver Post. Retrieved December 24, 2022.
5. ^ Surface Transportation Board Decision (PDF) (Report). November 13, 2012. Docket No. FD 35664. Retrieved December 24, 2022.
6. ^ Blevins, Jason (December 31, 2023). "The New York billionaire looking to change agriculture with Colorado farmland". The Colorado Sun. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
7. ^ Clark, Patrick (September 9, 2019). "How a Manhattan Scion Built a Rural Empire". Forbes. Retrieved December 24, 2022.
8. ^ KCVN, LLC and Colorado Pacific Railroad, LLC-Feeder Line Application-Line of V and S Railway, LLC, Located in Crowley, Pueblo, Otero, and Kiowa Counties, Colorado (Report). Surface Transportation Board. April 15, 2016. Docket No. FD 36005. Retrieved December 24, 2022.
9. ^ Waggoner, Priscilla (December 18, 2019). "It's Official and this is What It Looks Like!". Kiowa County Independent. Retrieved December 24, 2022.
10. ^ "Behind the Scenes at Colorado Pacific Railroad". Kiowa County Independent. March 23, 2022. Retrieved December 24, 2022.
11. ^ Barnett, Betsy (September 21, 2022). "New Locomotives on Colorado Pacific Railroad Signals Big Changes". Kiowa County Independent. Retrieved December 24, 2022.

## External links

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Colorado Pacific Railroad.

* https://solovievgroup.com/divisions/colorado-pacific-railroad

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Railroads of Colorado

Common carriers|

* BNSF Railway
* Cimarron Valley Railroad
* Colorado and Wyoming Railway
* Colorado Pacific Railroad
* Colorado Pacific Rio Grande Railroad
* Denver Rock Island Railroad
* Great Western Railway of Colorado
* Kansas and Oklahoma Railroad
* Kyle Railroad
* Nebraska Kansas Colorado Railway
* Rock & Rail
* San Luis Central Railroad
* San Luis and Rio Grande Railroad
* Union Pacific Railroad
* Utah Railway
* Towner Railway

Passenger carriers|

* Amtrak
* RTD Bus & Rail

Private carriers|

* Deseret Western Railway
* MillerCoors Brewery
* Rawhide Shortline

Heritage railroads|

* Cripple Creek and Victor Narrow Gauge Railroad
* Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad
* Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
* Fort Collins Municipal Railway
* Georgetown Loop
* Leadville, Colorado and Southern Railroad
* Platte Valley Trolley
* Rio Grande Scenic Railroad
* Royal Gorge Route Railroad

* See also: Former carriers in Colorado
* List of United States railroads by political division

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