Rails to Trails Update

Santa Cruz County is about to become the proud owner of a rail corridor. The Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) has locked in a phenomenal deal with Union Pacific (UP): $19 million for 32 miles of coastal real estate. More than half of this cost will be paid for by voter-approved bond funds earmarked for rail use only. If all goes according to plan, the Santa Cruz RTC will finalize the purchase in November, with rail trail development beginning soon after.

This is very exciting news. The coastal rail line is beautifully forested and offers a very accessible, flat place to walk or cycle, often with breathtaking views of the Monterey Bay. It will play a very important part in healthy transportation for the future, and it is very near to becoming a reality.

Imagine a 32 mile walking and bicycling trail that connects the coastal communities of our county.  The trail would connect homes, schools, businesses, shopping centers and recreational facilities.  A majority of these services, as well as 60,000 residents, are located within half a mile of the proposed trail.

Let's dream about some of the possible uses of such a rail trail. Kids in Live Oak could walk and bike free of car traffic to Shoreline Middle, Del Mar, and Live Oak Elementary schools as well as the Simpkins Family Swim Center. Many parents will not let their children bike to school due to fears of unsafe roads, this path will allow many parents to bike their kids to school rather than drive them. Families in Capitola could stroll along the bluffs overlooking the Bay and residents of Aptos would have a scenic and safe bike route to Capitola and mid-county.

A trail of this magnitude increases exercise opportunities, eco-tourism, recreational sporting good sales, and restaurant and lodging business. Bicycle related industries, which already bring in 130 million dollars annually, would see a significant boost from the trail with more sales taxes generated and an increase in local jobs. A rail trail will create an excellent opportunity for healthy exercise, thus saving millions of dollars annually spent combating the problems of obesity, heart disease and diabetes. This is why the idea was recently endorsed by the United Way's "Go for Health" project to combat childhood obesity in our county.  A recent cost-benefit analysis of trails, published in Health Promotion Practices, April 2005, concluded that for every dollar spent on a trail there was a $2.94 dollar health benefit realized.
A county-wide trail with easy access also helps decrease neighborhood traffic while decreasing bike and pedestrian accidents with automobiles. Santa Cruz County, according to police accident data, has some of the highest rates of bicycle and pedestrian accidents compared to other counties of similar size in California. People who live with three to five miles of work are looking for safe and relatively easy alternatives to driving and the coastal trail would provide thousands of residents with this opportunity.

All these factors make living next to a 32-mile trail a very desirable asset, which helps increase homeowner property values. In a 2002 survey of recent home buyers sponsored by the National Association of Realtors and the National Association of home Builders, trails ranked as the second most important community amenity out of a list of 18 choices. A coastal trail would be a wonderful addition to preserving the area's quality of life, which many locals cherish.
Currently the railroad line is used to carry freight trains to and from the cement plant in Davenport. Union Pacific moves several thousand tons of concrete and coal on the line three times a week. Every train that carries freight, keeps dozens of trucks off of Mission Street and Highway One, thus reducing congestion as well as the wear and tear on the roads caused by at least fifteen thousand tons of material each week.  When UP sells the right-of-way their freight service will be replaced by a new train operator - one friendly to passenger trains and a trail next to the rail. A new, more energetic train operator is likely to find more clients, add new cars to their trains, or run a few more trains a week, thus further reducing traffic and wear on our roadways. The beauty of the system is that, as the tracks incur more use for either freight or recreation rail service, they also raise more money for their own maintenance. Think of the railroad tracks as a new road, except that the users of the road will be directly charged for its upkeep.

The coastal rail corridor also has the future potential for passenger train services which might some day allow Watsonville residents to hop on a train to go to work in Silicon Valley, take classes at UCSC, or simply get to their job in the City of Santa Cruz or Capitola. Our traffic congested and space constrained county can ill afford to eliminate the option of train service, especially when the rail corridor already exists. By all indications, the price of oil and gasoline will continue to rise rapidly over the next decades. Having the opportunity to transport people, as well as goods at least 30 times more efficiency than personal cars, is an obvious preparation for the future.

Many people who live next to the rail line support the corridor purchase, but a stubborn few continue to fight the project. We should not be expected to apologize for proposing to run trains on the tracks. We acknowledge that the neighbors along the tracks will be impacted if and when increased train service does occur, but we implore them to work with the RTC to minimize those impacts. By fighting to shut down this beautiful resource, you keep the rest of us in traffic and our children's bikes locked in garages.

The funds are presently available to buy the right of way.  Once the line is purchased, we will have to build the trail.  While the cost of building a 32 mile trail is not insignificant, the job could be completed within five years with a combination of public and private funding. It is unique for transportation projects to receive private money. Trails are an exception as individuals, businesses and foundations are eager to contribute to a project that has many advantages for the community.

At a time when oil reserves are rapidly diminishing, and when industry and government are scrambling to develop alternative energy resources and alternative modes of transportation, it seems totally inappropriate to ignore a wonderful asset we have sitting in our backyard.

Dan Alper, Board Member of Friends of the Rail Trail, is an active community member on social and transportation issues affecting our county. He is also the co-founder of Noah's Bagels. But foremost Mr. Alper is a grandfather who wants his grandchildren to be able to use the coastal rail trail and not have to bike in traffic.

For more information on the coastal rail trail visit www.santacruztrail.org