GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colo. — Investigators are working to determine what caused a train derailment and bridge collapse that killed a truck driver on Interstate 25 in Pueblo County Sunday.
"What happened here in Pueblo yesterday is the canary in the coal mine that we have to get it right before we move forward," Democratic State Sen. Nick Hinrichsen of Pueblo said.
Hinrichsen and a handful of Democrats say they're ready to introduce a bill next session to limit the length of trains in Colorado and institute stricter safety measures. The move comes as pictures from Pueblo cause concern in places like Glenwood Springs.
"We’re trying to reduce the number of derailments and ensure that when a derailment happens, that the potential consequences are managed and contained," Hinrichsen said.
In Glenwood Springs, the future of the railroad that weaves through Glenwood Canyon is uncertain. A proposed expansion of the Uinta Basin Railway would bring extremely long trains carrying crude oil through the canyon every day.
Jonathan Godes is on the Glenwood Springs City Council and is the former mayor. He’s fought to keep the Uinta Basin Railway out of Glenwood Canyon.
"When you see it happening in Pueblo in relatively stable areas, I think that really speaks to our incredible concern that it would happen, and it has happened in this canyon before," Godes said. "You can’t underestimate what five two-mile-long trains will do for the train traffic, and the chances that will happen go up exponentially."
A judge recently put the project on hold, telling proponents to conduct a deeper safety study. The railroad company told lawmakers this summer they hadn’t done that yet when they asked the state to approve the project through one of Colorado’s most fragile environments.
"When you talk about Glenwood Canyon and the numerous geological hazards with the floods, the landslides, the unstable slopes, the wildfire, it’s a really, really fragile canyon with numerous events that can cause a derailment," Godes said.
Investigators are still trying to figure out what went wrong in Pueblo. But the pictures from there are enough to cause concern everywhere.
SUGGESTED VIDEOS: Full Episodes of Next with Kyle Clark