Hundreds of passengers’ plans were derailed on Wednesday when a train crashed into a tanker truck on Colorado’s Western Slope, damaging the tracks — but not just those on board were affected.
The train involved in the crash was the , a luxury passenger train operated by Canada-based . But Amtrak and various freight companies also use the Union Pacific-owned rails and, with the route closed to repair damage from the crash, those trains were unable to pass through on Wednesday and Thursday.
“We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience,” on Amtrak’s train status page stated. The route spans dozens of stations between Chicago and Emeryville, California.
Amtrak suspended service between Denver and Grand Junction on Thursday because of the derailment the day before, according to the alert. The disruption affected trips from those two stations and from the Fraser-Winter Park, Granby and Glenwood Springs stations, .
“Bus transportation will be provided,” the alert stated. “Crews will be coordinating a bus-to-train transfer to get all passengers off and onto another train in a safe and organized manner to continue travel.”
Amtrak service is expected to resume between the two stations on Friday, with the California Zephyr scheduled to leave Union Station at 8:46 a.m., according to the company.
“Repairs to the railroad track near Rifle, Colorado, have been completed, and rail service has now been restored in the area,” Union Pacific spokesperson Mike Jaixen said in an email to The Denver Post. Union Pacific owns the tracks where the passenger train derailed.
Jaixen did not answer questions about the extent of damage to the track, which parts of the track were damaged or the cost of repairs.
Amtrak officials did not respond to requests for comment Thursday.
The Utah-bound Canyon Spirit hit a tanker truck at about 9:40 a.m. Wednesday, just outside the town of Rifle in Garfield County, according to the Colorado State Patrol. The truck was on the train tracks along U.S. 6 when it was hit.
State patrol officials said the crash derailed six passenger cars and two locomotives, ripped open the truck’s tank of fuel and damaged the train tracks.
No train passengers reported any injuries, and the truck driver was taken to the hospital with minor injuries, according to the state patrol. Passengers were loaded onto buses to complete their trip to Moab, Utah.
The crash and derailment remain under investigation.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
