Six of the Regional Transportation District’s light rail lines were delayed for more than an hour Monday morning when a wheel broke on a train, causing it to block the track, RTD officials said.
Around 12:15 a.m. Monday, a wheel broke on a light rail train pulling into the railyard for the night, RTD spokesperson Tina Jaquez said.
“The incident, which caused the light rail vehicle to be inoperable, occurred at a rail switch and impacted all other train movement in the yard,” Jaquez said.
The broken wheel caused the train to block the railyard exit for trains from six RTD light rail lines, preventing them from pulling out onto their routes on time, including:
- D Line, which runs from the 18th & California Station to the Littleton-Mineral Station;
- E Line, which runs from Union Station to RidgeGate Parkway Station;
- H Line, which runs from the 18th & California Station to the Florida Station;
- L Line, which runs from the 30th & Downing Station to the Stout Station;
- R Line, which runs from Lincoln Station to Peoria Station;
- W Line, which runs from Union Station to the Jefferson County Government Center-Golden Station.
RTD crews worked overnight to remove the train from the tracks and inspect all other vehicles in the railyard, Jaquez said.
While the goal was to remove the stuck train and get all light rail lines active by their 4 a.m. start time, several morning trips were canceled on each of the six lines, Jaquez said.
Jaquez said train service resumed around 7 a.m., but D Line, E Line, R Line and H Line continued to experience up to 30-minute delays due to speed restrictions in .
The remaining light rail and commuter rail lines were not affected by the delay, including:
- A Line, which runs from Union Station to the Denver Airport Station;
- B Line, which runs from Union Station to Westminster Station;
- G Line, which runs from Union Station to Wheat Ridge Ward Station;
- N Line, which runs from Union Station to the Eastlake & 124th Station.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
