Letter: Camp Hale and Tennessee Pass railroad
While the nation’s spotlight briefly shines in our backyard on Camp Hale and Tennessee Pass/Highway 24, hopefully the dignitaries and representatives take a second to point the beam at the nearby Tennessee Pass Railroad. If the state and federal government want to take real action to protect something, the right of way that was gifted to the railroad companies free of charge would be a good place to start.
The railway that winds through the Royal Gorge, Browns Canyon, Camp Hale, and many small mountain towns in between is being held hostage by a faceless corporate entity. Union Pacific, the latest in the chain of owners, couldn’t care less about rivers, forests, communities and wildlife. The unused right of ways and adjacent properties full of abandoned scrap divide communities and prevent improvements that could drive tax revenue and increase the quality of life for these small towns. Parks, paths, social spaces and affordable housing are all better uses than what’s currently there or the nightmare of transporting crude oil in the future along the west’s most important rivers.
Brian Rodine
Minturn