The RTC’s vote for the interim trail marks the first real movement on the rail corridor after a decade of drift, writes Doug Erickson, founder and executive director of Santa Cruz Works. The interim trail — buildable, fundable and immediately useful — aligns policy with reality and public demand.
rail trail opinion
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Let’s not call the new rail-trail plan a ‘peace deal’: Paving over rail for 20 years rejects voters’ will
Local activist and yoga instructor Mark Stephens argues that the Koenig–Keeley “peace deal” approved last week by the RTC is not a harmless compromise but a 20-year removal of rail service that effectively kills future commuter rail in Santa Cruz County. He notes that voters overwhelmingly rejected that idea in 2022, when 73% voted against Measure D’s trail-only vision. Stephens warns that paving over tracks would make restoring rail economically and politically impossible, despite claims of a temporary fix. He urges officials to honor the public mandate and take any plan that eliminates rail back to the ballot box.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Santa Cruz’s moonshot: Build the trail now and stop chasing a rail mirage
Santa Cruz County faces a rare moment of alignment: a viable path to build the coastal trail without railbanking or surrendering the corridor, writes trail advocate Jack Brown. With a “peace deal” to build over the tracks before the Regional Transportation Commission, Brown says rail remains decades away and financially unrealistic.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
The rail-trail ‘peace deal’ is political theater: It rests on shaky legal ground
Santa Cruz County’s rail-trail “peace deal” promises 20 years of trail use, but it’s built on shaky legal ground, writes retired software engineer Peter Gibson. Federal freight rights — not local politicians — ultimately control the corridor, and those rights can’t be suspended by agreement.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Why is rail trail Santa Cruz County’s only big idea: Can we get more creative?
Is the rail trail really Santa Cruz County’s best bold idea? Stanford Ph.D. student Richard Randall argues it’s time to imagine alternatives — like massive workforce housing, smarter buses or even ferries — before sinking billions into a train with modest capacity.
Posted inLatest News
Street view: Santa Cruz County residents split on $4.3 billion train and trail
Lookout photojournalist Kevin Painchaud took to the streets to talk to residents about their perspectives on the planned passenger train and 32-mile coastal trail, whether they would regularly use either, and if they would support higher sales taxes to help pay for the ambitious projects.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
RTC must stop the bleeding and face reality
Cami “Clemensen” Corvin urges the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission to halt unrealistic trail plans, citing a $72 million funding gap and looming grant losses. She warns that low-income seniors in mobile home parks, like the one she lives in, face threats of displacement and litigation despite the agency’s lack of resources. Corvin argues that voters never approved a blank check and that poor planning, not “obstructionists,” is to blame for the shortfall.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Letter to the editor: Manu Koenig’s anti-rail stance is obvious
In a letter to the editor, a Soquel resident points out what he sees as Supervisor Manu Koenig’s stance against Santa Cruz County’s proposed passenger rail line.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Letter to the editor: Rail is the safest and most efficient way to move goods
In a letter to the editor, an Aptos resident extols the safety and value of rail for transporting goods.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Let’s remember what we gain with a train
Soquel resident Peter Gibson is tired of hearing about all the problems of building a zero-emissions passenger train in Santa Cruz County and wonders why we aren’t focusing on the benefits.