McCook rail service to Denver

Dear Editor,

In its first days of existence, McCook was a railhead where steam engines were refueled with coal and water.

Trains carried passengers and freight to Denver. I have taken the train to Denver from mcCook many times. In the 1990s, the passengers were taken to Brighton, 39 miles from downtown Denver. (This was very inconvenient.)

Now there is a new rail service at the Denver Union Station in 2016. Passengers can travel between the Denver International Airport and the Denver Union Station at 17th and Wynkoup Street in just 37 minutes for $9 each way.

The first train station was built in 1868 to serve the Denver Pacific Railway. This was connected to the main transcontinental line at Cheyenne, Wyo.

By 19875 there were four different railroad lines carrying passengers.

In 1880, the Union Pacific, Denver and Rio Grande Western, Denver South Park and Pacific and the Colorado Central built a station in Denver. It was opened ready for passengers in 1881.

Unfortunately, a fire that started in the women's restroom in 1894 destroyed the central part of the station. It was reopened in 1914 with a redesigned central portion.

During World War II there was a surge of rail traffic. In the last part of the 20th century there was a decline in demand for a rail service. Amtrak became the sole provider of rail service.

In 2006, the Union Station Neighborhood Co. began developing the site of the old Denver Union Station. In 2014, a new underground 22-gate Union Bus Station Bus Concourse opened.

Now in 2016, the Denver Union Station is the transportation hub of the Mile High City of Denver. The upper levels of the building have become the 112-room Crawford Hotel. On the ground level is the 12,000 square-foot great hall.

There is also a train waiting room with 10 retail and restaurant outlets.

A farmer's market is open from June 4 to 22.

The Denver Union Station is alive and well.

Helen Ruth Arnold,

Trenton, Neb.