By Railfan & Railroad Staff
SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — Voters in California rejected a proposal to replace a county-owned rail line with a bike trail at the ballot box last week. Santa Cruz County voters rejected what was called “Measure D” 72.76 percent to 27.24 percent, according to Santa Cruz Local.
In January, the owners of Roaring Camp Railroads, began rallying public support against a proposal before the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission that would force it to abandon its rail line for freight service. The railroad said it was part of a wider plan to railbank a county-owned line and turn it into a trail. Roaring Camp currently has the contract to provide freight service on the county-owned Santa Cruz Branch Rail Line, which connects to its eight-mile Felton Branch. But some in the community would like to see the Santa Cruz line turned into a pedestrian trail. The scenic Santa Cruz line, which previously belonged to Southern Pacific and Union Pacific, runs right through Santa Cruz and along the coast.
County officials told the newspaper in January that they would be fine with the railroad still providing tourist trains on its own line. By forcing the railroad to abandon its own line for freight service though, it would be easier to get approval for railbanking of the government-owned line, which connects to it (and is its connection to the national rail network).
The non-profit Santa Cruz County Greenway Inc., which backed the trail, then gathered signatures to put the issue to a vote. After the vote was tallied on June 7, the railroad thanked the voters for their overwhelming support.
“We are very humbled by the outpouring of support for the future of our Santa Cruz Big Trees & Pacific Railway, and for the future of Rail Transportation in our County. Your voices and love for Roaring Camp have been heard from the trees to the seas and we truly are grateful for your loyalty. From the letter writing to the phone calls, and from sharing on social media to canvasing the streets, thank you to all from the bottom of our hearts,” Roaring Camp wrote on Facebook.
