Which Longmont Crossing You Live Near Decides When the Train Horns Stop

At Longs Peak Avenue, the construction is finished. Longmont completed its Federal Railroad Administration-approved safety work there in July 2026, along with three other crossings at 3rd, 9th and 17th avenues. Across the four crossings, the improvements vary by location and include upgraded gates, raised medians, fencing and enhanced pedestrian crossings. Trains still sound their horns at all four. Under the City's current schedule, they will keep doing so at Longs Peak Avenue until summer 2027.

That gap between finished concrete and actual quiet matters if you're touring homes near downtown Longmont this fall. The BNSF line carries up to 17 trains a day through town, and federal rules require a horn at every public crossing. On October 9, the City broke ground on the 1st & Main Transit Station a few blocks away. Over the next three years, homes along this corridor will get quieter and better connected. Each block gets there on its own date, and some of those dates are already moving.

Finished Gates, Same Horns

Building a crossing doesn't make it quiet. The City's quiet zone page says horns stop routinely only after the Federal Railroad Administration formally designates each crossing as part of a quiet zone. Longmont has split its 17 crossings into seven potential quiet zones along a corridor that will eventually run from Hover Street to State Highway 66. A $4 million FRA grant covers 14 of those crossings. The City is funding the rest through its voter-approved ¾-cent Street Fund tax.

So a finished crossing can still wait on its neighbors. Three of the four crossings completed in July are scheduled to go quiet alongside crossings that only started construction this late summer.

The schedule has also shifted in just three months. In its July 10 release, the City expected 17th Avenue to go quiet in fall 2026 and the 5th Avenue and Terry Street closures in winter 2026. The City's page as of October 10 now lists all three for early 2027.

The City's July list also puts Emery Street, which is already upgraded, in the spring 2028 group.

Two crossings are changing in a different way. Once construction is done, 5th Avenue at Atwood and 1st Avenue at Terry Street will close permanently to through traffic. Noraa Concrete Construction is building that second group now. On those blocks, the horns will stop, but you'll also lose that route across the tracks. That should factor into how you judge the commute from a house nearby.

Why Main and Coffman Come Last

The crossings closest to the heart of downtown are scheduled last, and the transit project explains why. City Manager Harold Dominguez said staff would coordinate the parking garage, the Coffman Street extension, railroad quiet zones, the Boston Avenue connections and the planned multifamily housing to reduce traffic and other disruptions. The City's proposed 2027–2031 capital plan puts the Coffman crossing's quiet zone improvements in the quiet zone project. Coffman pedestrian and bike work falls under the station-area project.

In practice, homes nearest 1st and Main face the longest stretch of construction and the latest horn relief. Under the current schedule, that relief arrives in spring 2028.

The project driving that sequence is big. The Times-Call reports the transit center and Coffman Street extension cost $70 million and are targeted for completion by the end of 2027. The five-story building will have 10 bus bays, about 700 parking spaces and bicycle storage. Funding includes $16.4 million from RTD, a $4 million state Transit-Oriented Communities grant, and more than $17.6 million the City has put into property and related costs. In September, City Council unanimously authorized up to $38 million in certificates of participation and approved the 29.5-acre 1st and Main Urban Renewal Plan.

The Transit Arrives in Order, and Only Part of It Is Here

If you're weighing a home near downtown, separate what you can use today from what is scheduled and what depends on a vote. The timeline looks like this:

1. Now. RTD's SkyRide Route AL started September 27, 2026. It runs hourly every day from 8th Avenue and Coffman Street to Denver International Airport, stopping at Longmont Park-n-Ride, US 287/Niwot Road and Lafayette Park-n-Ride. SkyRide trips require an airport fare, and the Airport Day Pass is $10.
2. Mid-2027. CDOT expects full CO 119 Bus Rapid Transit service between Longmont and Boulder. The Blue pattern is planned at a minimum of every 30 minutes on weekdays. The $165 million corridor project is scheduled through spring 2027 and includes a Coffman Street busway and a new north Longmont Park-n-Ride.
3. End of 2027. The 1st & Main Transit Station is scheduled to open.
4. Early 2027 through 2028. A separate mixed-use building wrapping the station is planned with about 250 apartments over commercial space. The City lists a start in early 2027 and completion by the end of 2028. BizWest reports 225 to 300 apartments and estimates the private development at $100 million to $120 million.
5. 2029. The Colorado Connector starter rail service is already funded at three daily round trips between Denver and Fort Collins, with eight stations including Longmont. The Longmont rail station is planned next to the transit hub on six acres between First and Boston avenues.
6. August 2029. Front Range Community College is aiming to start classes at its planned 6.14-acre campus east of Main Street, between First and Boston avenues.

"We're building this to make it easier for residents to get to school, get to work, and build careers here in Longmont." Harold Dominguez, Longmont city manager, quoted in BizWest

What Ballot Issue 7A Decides About Rail Frequency

Three trains a day in each direction makes for a thin commuter schedule, and that is where the November ballot comes in. Ballot Issue 7A proposes a 0.333% sales and use tax for the Front Range Passenger Rail District and authorizes $580 million in district debt. The Colorado Sun explains that the tax applies inside the district's included municipalities and special districts, Longmont and Boulder among them. It doesn't cover every address in the counties where 7A appears on the ballot.

According to the district's published plan, the 2029 starter service goes ahead on existing funding either way. The tax-funded plan adds two Denver–Pueblo round trips by 2032 and later aims for up to 10 daily northern round trips. The vote doesn't decide whether a train stops in Longmont. It decides how often trains run later on.

The August Numbers Are Pricing Today's Block

Longmont's citywide sales data shows attached homes moving much more slowly than detached homes. According to the Longmont Association of REALTORS® August 2026 update, which uses Colorado Association of REALTORS® data:

• Single-family, August 2026: median sales price of $604,000, down 4.4% from August 2025. There were 99 sales, a median of 52 days on market and 2.8 months of supply.
• Townhouse/condo, August 2026: median sales price of $437,475, down 5.9%. There were 20 sales, and days on market rose 41% to 86. Supply was 5.3 months, with sellers receiving 98.2% of list price.

These are citywide figures for a single month. The report itself warns that small samples can make one month look extreme, and its prices don't account for seller concessions. No September report for Longmont had been posted as of October 10.

Even with those limits, a market with 5.3 months of supply gives attached-home buyers more time to ask questions than a market with 2.8. If you're buying a townhome or condo near the tracks this fall, you're paying today's price for a block whose horns, bus service and construction traffic will all change on dates the City has already revised once.

Questions Worth Raising Before an Offer Near the Tracks

• Which crossing is closest to the home, and which quiet zone date does the City currently list for it?
• Is the home near 5th Avenue/Atwood or 1st Avenue/Terry Street, where through traffic will end permanently?
• How close is the home to the 1st & Main construction area, which is scheduled to stay active through the end of 2027, with the apartment building running into 2028?
• Is the nearest stop for daily travel the existing Route AL stop at 8th and Coffman, or a future BRT stop that isn't open yet?

FAQ

Do the crossing gates finished in July mean horns have stopped there? No. Horns continue until the FRA designates each crossing as a quiet zone. The City currently expects 17th Avenue in early 2027 and 3rd, 9th and Longs Peak avenues in summer 2027.

Is there transit from downtown Longmont to the airport right now? Yes. Route AL has run hourly from 8th Avenue and Coffman Street to DIA since September 27, 2026.

Will Longmont get rail service if 7A fails? The district says the 2029 starter service of three daily round trips, with a Longmont stop, is funded by existing commitments. More frequent service depends on the new tax.

If you're comparing homes along Longmont's rail corridor, we'll check each address against the City's current quiet zone and construction schedule and pull the attached and detached comps that apply to that block. Reach out to Paul & Kam Real Estate and let's go through the crossing dates before you write an offer.

This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.