Advocates rally in Live Oak in support of rail, urge RTC to keep tracks intact
- Friends of the Rail and Trail
- 2 days ago
- 5 min read
by Max Chun, May 20, 2026
About 50 rail supporters and transit advocates gathered in Live Oak on Wednesday morning to rally in support of passenger rail and to urge the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) to keep the tracks intact.
The rally largely stems from the RTC’s decision last December to build 8 miles of the Coastal Rail Trail over the tracks rather than next to them as was previously planned, in an effort to complete the project within budget and on time while retaining a $96.6 million grant from the state. The Coastal Rail Trail is envisioned as a 32-mile bicycle and pedestrian trail, split up into 20 segments, that runs adjacent to the Santa Cruz Branch Rail Line from Davenport to Watsonville, while the RTC works through plans for future passenger rail along the line.
The move signified a major reversal from the long-standing plans, and has heightened concern among rail advocates that it is the first step toward the death of passenger rail, especially if the tracks are removed. County voters soundly rejected 2022’s Measure D, which would have included plans for a trail without rail service in the county’s general plan. Of the votes cast, 73% were against Measure D.
How exactly to deal with the existing tracks has been uncertain. Although the tentative plan is to build the trail over the tracks between the San Lorenzo River trestle, near the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, and State Park Drive in Aptos, the commission requested that planners find options that preserve the tracks by leaving them in place and not completely covering them.
RTC executive director Sarah Christensen told Lookout that options for trail construction, including ways to build the project so that rails do not have to be removed, are expected to come back to the commission later this year. That will include a variety of factors such as cost and feasibility, environmental impacts and any right-of-way impacts, although she said the latter appears unlikely to come up.
At Wednesday’s rally, rail advocates held up signs in support of passenger rail and keeping the tracks in place, as cars honked horns in support as they drove down 17th Avenue near Simpkins Family Swim Center. Matt Farrell, board chair of Santa Cruz County Friends of the Rail and Trail, told Lookout that the group is pushing for a “hybrid” model. That essentially allows the trail to be constructed next to the rail line, approach the rail line in more constrained areas, and even share the path of the rail line in some sections if necessary. He added that Humboldt County uses this style of trail.
“Humboldt County was able to get it approved by the California Public Utilities Commission,” he said. “So we believe this is a technically acceptable solution. We need to preserve both [rail and trail] and this is the way to do that.”
Farrell also expressed concern that removal of the tracks in even a short section could make the rail trail project less competitive for the federal Corridor ID program, a Federal Railroad Administration program that provides the RTC with rail planning and design services. However, Christensen said she does not believe that to be true.
“It wouldn’t change anything from a Corridor ID eligibility standpoint, and we heard that multiple times from folks from the Caltrans Division of Rail,” she said.
The rally had several speakers who discussed the need for passenger rail. Cabrillo College trustee Adam Spickler said future zero-emission passenger rail service would be important to students and would realize the goal of moving away from fossil fuel dependency.
“It’s critical for our students to find a way to mobilize in that direction now, to live a life here in our community that emblemizes that, and it’s critical for us to keep the rail infrastructure in place to make that a reality,” he said.
Housing Santa Cruz County executive director Elaine Johnson, who grew up in New York City, said she didn’t learn to drive until her 30s because of that city’s extensive subway system. She also said Santa Cruz County lacks transit equity, and that many residents do not have ample access to transportation that could open the door for better career opportunities.
“It’s a lot of fun riding on the trains, but it also gives access to everyone, regardless of race, sex and financial impact,” she said. “Let’s make this playing field level.”
Stephanie Auld, who serves on the Elderly and Disabled Transportation Advisory Committee and the In-Home Supportive Services Public Authority Advisory Commission, said that on top of helping South County residents better navigate the area and reach work more easily, passenger rail service would also provide great benefit to older adults and disabled residents.
“Currently, we have a care provider shortage because workers can’t afford to spend two hours in traffic to reach a client. This shortage leaves many of our most vulnerable neighbors not knowing when they will get their next meal or get help with basic sanitary requirements,” she said. “Seventy-three percent of voters delivered a mandate for this progress, they chose a future where mobility is a right, not a privilege, and where aging doesn’t mean being stranded.”
In a statement on Wednesday afternoon, Christensen addressed the rally, and said that while the RTC shares the community vision for passenger rail and a multi-use trail, saving the current tracks will not mean “saving a ready-to-use passenger rail corridor,” but rather means preserving a right-of-way that would need to be rebuilt. She added that the existing tracks “cannot support passenger rail without complete reconstruction.”
“The corridor’s value lies in the right-of-way itself — the land, the alignment, the connection between our communities — and that is precisely what the RTC is committed to preserving,” the statement reads.
Christensen added that the passenger rail’s preliminary engineering and environmental analysis still has a $15 million funding gap, which is where she suggests supporters focus their advocacy.
“If you want to see passenger rail on this corridor, the most powerful thing you can do right now is advocate alongside us to your state legislators, to your congressional representatives, to the funding agencies that hold the keys to the next phase. That is where your advocacy will make the biggest difference,” she said.
The project’s fact sheet shows that construction is likely a decade away, and operations are not likely to begin until 2049 or later. It would also need a 1.5% countywide sales tax to cover the minimum 20% local match for construction, and a 2.25% sales tax to cover a 50% local match.
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