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Northwest Neighbors Gather Signatures For Rail Line Plan

DENVER (CBS4) - A group of residents from the north side of the Denver metro area want to make sure they get the commuter rail they have been promised.

A rail line from Union Station in downtown Denver that would run to Boulder and then up to Longmont has been part of the FasTracks plan since voters approved it in 2004.

But now officials with the Regional Transportation District are saying it might be cost prohibitive and the transit agency is considering just improving bus transportation on Highway 36.

Westminster resident Gary Shea is among those who still support the rail project and are starting to gather signatures in a petition.

"I think if the northwest rail was completed as promised I think the citizens would be on board with the tax increase," said Shea, who is part of a group called Westminster Progressive Homeowners.

RTD's rail lines already in use in Denver in the southern metro area have been very successful.

Work is under way to extend a line to Golden from downtown, and a plan to build a rail line from downtown to Denver International Airport is progressing.

Watch Denver Business Journal reporter Mark Harden's comments about the situation in the video clip below from CBS4 News at 6 p.m. on Thursday:

The RTD Board of Directors is scheduled to make their decision on March 8 about the northwest rail line plans.

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