Quick Take
The Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission on Thursday approved its proposed budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year, which is similar to the current year’s budget. It also approved agreements in the process of becoming the Santa Cruz Branch Rail Line’s operator.
The Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission approved its proposed budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year. It also officially approved the separation agreement with Minnesota-based Progressive Rail, and the move to enter a contract with Mississippi-based Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad to operate the segment of rail with freight customers in South County.
Italo Jimenez, the RTC’s finance and budget officer, presented the proposed budget at the meeting. He called it “balanced and fiscally responsible.”
The budget includes $134,784,463 in total revenue and $187,874,974 in expenditures. The Transportation Development Act, a California law that provides funding to counties for transit operations, planning, bus and rail projects, bikeways and more, will contribute nearly $12.7 million to the budget, about $45,000 more than in the current budget. Revenue forecasts from Measure D, a 30-year, half-cent sales tax for transportation infrastructure maintenance and improvements, show a 1.6% increase from $27,294,286 in the 2025-26 fiscal year to $27,731,999 in the 2026-27 fiscal year.
Of the available Measure D funds, a little more than $8 million will go to neighborhood improvements, 25% to highway corridors, 20% to transit and paratransit operations, 17% for transportation improvements and 8% to the rail corridor.
The State Transit Assistance funding will see a noticeable decrease, dropping 9.75% from $5,091,668 in the current fiscal year to $4,595,164 in the upcoming fiscal year. The money will be distributed to both the RTC and eligible transit operators in the county.
Commissioners approved the budget shortly after the presentation.
Although the commission also approved separation from Progressive Rail and moved to pursue a contract with the new operator, Progressive Rail still has some steps to take to complete the process. It will transfer operations for the South County portion of the rail line that still has freight customers to the new operator, and file for discontinuance of the other parts of the line, which is a temporary condition that relieves an operator of its common carrier obligations while preserving the line for future use. The federal Surface Transportation Board will need to approve the moves.
Bella Kressman, the commission’s property specialist, said she expects that process to take 30 days, at which point the new rail operator could begin business in the county.
“It’s fairly straightforward as we understand, and shortly thereafter, if approved by the Surface Transportation Board, Rock Island will be ready to begin freight service and [RTC’s new subsidiary] Santa Cruz County Coastal Rail will take over as the non-operating common carrier north of Watsonville,” Kressman said.
Latest news
Here’s what’s happening this week on our roadways:
- Electrical work, tree work, and utility work are shutting down one lane of Highway 9 between Hihn Street and San Lorenzo Valley Elementary School, California Drive/Middle Road and Pike Road, Pike Road and Irwin Way, Clear Creek/Pacific Street and Irwin Way, Riverdale Park and Monaco Lane, Pool Drive and Old County Highway, Teilh Drive and Greenvale Drive and Stapp Road and Sylvan Avenue from Monday through Friday between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m.
- K-rail installation is causing an overnight closure of northbound Highway 1 between State Park Drive and Park Avenue from Monday through Friday between 9 p.m. and 6:30 a.m.
- Tree removal is shutting down one lane of northbound Highway 17 between Santas Village Road and Vine Hill Road from Monday through Friday between 9:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.
- Emergency sewer work in Soquel Village could occasionally block access to driveways, sidewalks, on-street parking and interrupt sewer service on weekdays until June 30, on Soquel Drive, Porter Street and Main Street. Work on Soquel Drive will be overnight from 8:30 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Porter and Main streets. Other, shorter-duration potholing on Porter, Main and Center streets and Daubenbiss Avenue will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
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