$50,000 Sunday Stroll on the Westside Railroad Tracks

Wed, Jan 30, 2008 1:52AM

On January 27th, People Power, an advocate for human-powered transportation in Santa Cruz County, hosted a walk along the rail corridor in Santa Cruz in response to recent threats by Union Pacific to fine "trespassers" up to $2,000. The walk in the rain, which brought out more than two dozen people, featured local historian Ross Gibson who included information on the past and possible future of rail transportation in Santa Cruz County. The Sunday stroll began at Swift Street on the Westside of Santa Cruz and ended at Bay Street.

The Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission (SCCRTC) has been in negotiations with Union Pacific Railroad (UP) for over three years to acquire the line. The SCCRTC has agreed to pay $19 million to UP for the Santa Cruz Branch (rail) Line.

Once the local RTC takes ownership of the rail corridor the Santa Cruz County Friends of the Rail Trail hope to begin building segments of a rail trail, ultimately spanning the entire 31 miles from Davenport to Watsonville. Passenger trains and the coastal rail trail could run together along the coastal line to help students, commuters, and visitors to travel throughout the County.

The Santa Cruz County Friends of the Rail Trail is a not for profit organization dedicated to the development of bicycle and pedestrian paths within rail corridors throughout Santa Cruz County. FORT members and volunteers build and maintain rail trails, inform and involve the public, and recommend best trail practices to government agencies.

You can learn more by visiting the following websites:

Santa Cruz County Friends of the Rail Trail
http://www.santacruztrail.org

People Power! sensible transportation for Santa Cruz County
http://www.peoplepowersc.org

The announcement of the Historic Walk on the Railroad Corridor
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/01/23/18474424.php

Ross Gibson, the guide for the walk along the rail corridor, is a highly regarded local historian. You can read articles he has written on various aspects of Santa Cruz history by searching the archives of the Santa Cruz Library. Some articles that I have found to be very interesting are:

The Santa Cruz Wharf
by Ross Eric Gibson
The article originally appeared in the San Jose Mercury News, July 19, 1994
http://www.santacruzpl.org/history/work/wharf.shtml

This next article is talking about different tracks, but it's still worth checking out if you are curious:

President Roosevelt's 1903 Trip to
Santa Cruz and the
Big Trees Redwood Grove
By Ross Gibson
http://www.santacruzdepot.org/tr.htm

140 Years of Railroading in Santa Cruz County
Parts 1 and 2
by Rick Hamman
This article was first published in the Aptos Times, in March 1996 and April 1, 1996 issues.
http://www.santacruzpl.org/history/trans/railrd.shtml
http://www.santacruzpl.org/history/trans/railrd2.shtml

Union Pacific Railroad
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Pacific_Railroad

Union Pacific Vengeance Against Coastal Rail Trail

A post on Santa Cruz Indymedia on November 11th, 2005 stated, "A group of workers from the [Union Pacific] railroad came on 11/10/05 to the newly built trail next to the railroad tracks near Almar. They used a grader to tear up the volunteer-built trail as to render it difficult to ride a bike on."

Coastal Rail Trail October 28 and November 11, 2005
http://www.indybay.org/uploads/2008/01/23/railtrail.jpg

Halloween Critical Massers Ride the Streets of Santa Cruz (October 28, 2005)
http://santacruz.indymedia.org/newswire/display/18886/index.php

Union Pacific Employees Try To Destroy Santa Cruz Coastal Rail Trail (November 11, 2005)
http://santacruz.indymedia.org/newswire/display/18976/index.php

§Garbage

by ~Bradley

Wed, Jan 30, 2008 1:52AM

§Ross Eric Gibson

by ~Bradley

Wed, Jan 30, 2008 1:52AM

§Neal Coonerty

by ~Bradley

Wed, Jan 30, 2008 1:52AM

Santa Cruz County - Third District Supervisor

Neal Coonerty was elected in June, 2006, to a four-year term starting in January, 2007. Before being elected to the Board of Supervisors, Neal Coonerty was the owner and operator of Bookshop Santa Cruz in downtown Santa Cruz, a business he successfully ran since 1973. Supervisor Coonerty also served on the Santa Cruz City Council from 1990 to 1994. He was elected Mayor of Santa Cruz in 1993.
http://www.co.santa-cruz.ca.us/bds/dist3.htm

§James Danaher

by ~Bradley

Wed, Jan 30, 2008 1:52AM

James Danaher formerly served as the chair of the transportation committee for the Sierra Club (Ventana Chapter) and is a supporter of the Rail Trail.
Santa Cruz County Friends of the Rail Trail
http://www.santacruztrail.org

§Micah Posner

by ~Bradley

Wed, Jan 30, 2008 1:52AM

Micah Posner is the head of People Power, a bicycle advocacy group in Santa Cruz. Ross Gibson is in the background.
http://www.peoplepowersc.org

§Railroad Crossing

by ~Bradley

Wed, Jan 30, 2008 1:52AM

§Tracks

by ~Bradley

Wed, Jan 30, 2008 1:52AM

§Ross and Lisa

by ~Bradley

Wed, Jan 30, 2008 1:52AM

Ross is a local historian and Lisa works with People Power!

§Visioning

by ~Bradley

Wed, Jan 30, 2008 1:52AM

Imagine a passenger train taking UC Santa Cruz students and workers from Watsonville to the Bay Street Train Station where a bus would pickup the commuters and bring them to UCSC.

§Northbound

by ~Bradley

Wed, Jan 30, 2008 1:52AM

§Fallen Tree

by ~Bradley

Wed, Jan 30, 2008 1:52AM

$50,000 Sunday Stroll on the Westside Railroad Tracks

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