Rail Safety Rulemaking
Rail Safety Rulemaking
HB24-1030 and SB25-162 require the Office of Rail Safety to undertake several rulemakings to comply with new provisions in these bills. The table below summarizes the status of all open heavy rail rulemakings, including those related to other bills or requirements. The full set of records for each rulemaking can be accessed by searching under the referenced Proceeding Number on the PUC’s E-Filings page.
Current Rail Safety Rulemakings
| Milestone | Scheduled Completion Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-Rulemaking Meetings | Feb 14, 2025 | |
| Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) | Feb 27, 2025 | |
| Initial Public Comments | March 25, 2025 | |
| Response Comments | April 10, 2025 | |
| Public Hearing | April 15, 2025 | |
| Recommended Decision | May 29, 2025 | |
| Exceptions Due | June 18, 2025 | Decision adopting Recommended Decision R25-0392 August 21, 2025. |
| Final Adoption of Rules by PUC | October 7, 2025 | Decision C25-0731: Final Adoption of Rules by PUC |
| Publication and Effective Date | TBD | In most cases, adopted rules become effective within two months of their adoption (generally, 20 days following publication in the Colorado Register) |
Training and Incident Response Requirements
Temporary Rules (Proceeding No. 25R-0156R and 25R-0180R) were issued April 4, 2025 and on April 30, 2025. These rules remain in effect for 210 days or until permanent rules become effective (whichever period is less).
| Milestone | Scheduled Completion Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Temporary Rules Stakeholder Meeting | March 7, 2025 | |
| Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) | April 4, 2025 | |
| Initial Public Comments | June 5, 2025 | *Extended from original date of April 24 |
| Response Comments | June 23, 2025 | *Extended from original date of May 9 |
| Public hearing | June 30, 2025 | Via zoom. More info on the PUC calendar on the main webpage. https://puc.colorado.gov/ |
| Recommended Decision | November 10, 2025 | Recommended Decision Adopting Rules and Closing Proceeding. |
| Exceptions Due | November 30, 2025 | |
| Final Adoption of Rules by PUC | TBD | |
| Publication and Effective Date | TBD | In most cases, adopted rules become effective within two months of their adoption (generally, 20 days following publication in the Colorado Register) |
Wayside Detector & Blocked Crossing
Temporary Rules (Proceeding No. 24R-0558R) issued December 20, 2024 and adopted on January 13, 2025. These rules remain in effect for 210 days or until permanent rules become effective (whichever period is less).
| Milestone | Scheduled Completion Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Temporary Rules Stakeholder Meeting | November, 2024 | |
| Pre-Rulemaking Stakeholder Meetings | July 18, 2025 1 - 4 p.m. | Via zoom. More info on the PUC calendar on the main webpage. https://puc.colorado.gov/ |
| Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) and subsequent rulemaking milestones | September 30, 2025 | Proceeding No. 25R-0408R assigned. |
| Initial Public Comments | October 24, 2025 | |
| Response Comments | October 31, 2025 | |
| Public Hearing | November 6, 2025 11:30 a.m. |
Via zoom. More info on the PUC calendar on the main webpage. |
| Public Hearing | January 8, 2025 11:30 a.m. | Via zoom. More info on the PUC calendar on the main webpage. https://puc.colorado.gov/ |
| Milestone | Scheduled Completion Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-Participant Hearings Meetings | May 28, 2025 | Multiple meetings occurred up to May 28, 2025 for participants to reach a consensus on template agreements required by Rule 7214 |
| Participant Hearings | July 8, 2025 September 8, 2025 December 9, 2025 2:30.m. February 24, 2026 2:30p.m. | Via zoom. More info on the PUC calendar on the main webpage. https://puc.colorado.gov/ |
| Template Construction and Maintenance Agreements and Preliminary Engineering Agreements Complete | Anticipated early March 2026 |
| Milestone | Scheduled Completion Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) and subsequent rulemaking milestones | August 6, 2025 | The NOPR is PUC proceeding number 25R-0325R, and the temporary rule PUC proceeding No. is 25R-0326R. |
| Remote Public Hearing | September 22, 2025 11:30AM | Via zoom. More info to be added on the PUC calendar on the main webpage. https://puc.colorado.gov/ |
| Continuation of Remote Public Hearing | November 19, 2025 11:30AM | Via zoom. More info to be added on the PUC calendar on the main webpage. Initial Written comments due October 31, 2025, initial responsive comments due November 7, 2025. |