Metro Denver voters approved the FasTracks plan in 2004, agreeing to fund an expansive rail network including a line from Union Station to Longmont and ambitions for Front Range service from Trinidad to Fort Collins. More than 20 years later, it is clear taxpayers have been fleeced for a pipe dream.

The Regional Transportation District’s (RTD) promise of passenger rail to Longmont remains a mirage, and the broader Front Range plan is equally elusive. A recent Gazette report exposes the grim reality: the Longmont line alone carries a $650 million price tag for a mere 1,100 daily boardings, a cost-benefit ratio that no one can defend. It is time to pull the plug on these rail fantasies and learn a hard lesson: vote with caution and always beware of politicians promising that which they cannot produce.

The FasTracks plan, sold as a transformative public transit solution, has drained taxpayers for 20 years with nothing to show for the Denver-to-Boulder-to Longmont corridor. RTD’s 2024 feasibility study reveals a staggering $591,000 for each daily rider for the proposed twice-daily commuter rail — an economic absurdity.

The original 2004 promise of frequent service (every 15 minutes at peak times) has been slashed to a paltry three round trips daily, rendering the line useless for most commuters. Reddit users in Longmont have called it “effectively useless,” noting it won’t serve spontaneous trips for dinner or events in Denver. The numbers don’t lie: RTD’s earlier projections of 8,600–10,100 daily riders have collapsed to 1,100, exposing the plan’s overoptimism. This isn’t progress; it is betrayal.

The Front Range rail from Trinidad to Fort Collins fares no better. Estimated at up to $900 million, it faces the same hurdles: low ridership projections, high costs, and reliance on uncertain federal funding or public-private partnerships with Amtrak or BNSF Railway.

RTD’s history of delays — Longmont’s line was promised by 2014, then pushed to 2044 — mirrors California’s high-speed rail boondoggle. That project, initially pitched at $33 billion in 2008, has ballooned to $128 billion with only a fraction of the track installed. Decades in, California’s rail remains incomplete, plagued by mismanagement and cost overruns. Colorado’s FasTracks echoes this cautionary tale: grand promises, meager results and taxpayers footing the bill.

The lesson here is stark: voters must scrutinize ballot measures promising shiny things that make no sense. Passenger rail is the past, not the future, as the newest electric cars nearly drive themselves, flying cars become increasingly viable, and AI technology supports more stay-at-home work.

Politicians sold FasTracks as a cure for congestion and sprawl, but 20 years of sales taxes have yielded nothing more than broken dreams. RTD’s budget woes, with declining ridership and a “sinking ship” reputation, further erode confidence.

Instead of throwing more money at an unsustainable rail fantasy, resources should shift to practical solutions — expanding rapid bus transit, like Denver’s Colfax Bus Rapid Transit, or enhancing existing light rail lines. These options deliver higher ridership at lower costs, serving real commuters rather than chasing pipe dreams.

It can be hard to admit defeat, but the Longmont and Front Range rail plans are non-starters. Voters deserve honesty, not more excuses. Like California, Colorado must face reality: some promises are too costly to keep. Let’s redirect our focus to transit that works, leaving pie-in-the-sky rail as a sad and costly mistake.