The 32-mile Santa Cruz Branch Rail Line passes Buena Vista Drive and San Andreas Road near Watsonville. (Nik Altenberg — Santa Cruz Local)

To accommodate passenger rail service on the Santa Cruz Branch Rail Line, commission staff recommended replacement of 28 bridges and repairs of five other bridges. The estimated cost is $980 million. The figure does not include bridge work on the adjacent Coastal Rail Trail for cyclists and pedestrians or trackwork, grade crossings, fences and other costs.

The commission voted 9-1 to send the matter back to staff to look for additional savings, and to approve the intercity passenger rail preference. 

“I’m not sure every one of those bridges out there is at the end of its useful life,” said Andy Schiffrin, an alternate transportation commissioner for Santa Cruz County Supervisor Justin Cummings. Schiffrin said staff should provide some other options. “I don’t believe that there can’t be alternatives that would have less of a cost,” he said. “What I’m asking for is just taking another look.”

Sarah Christensen, executive director of the regional transportation commission, said that replacing fewer bridges might save money upfront. But “trying to limp along with some of these older bridges” could drive up long-term maintenance costs, she said. 

“That has considerations for the quality of service as well, if we have to shut down the facility to do maintenance all the time,” Christensen said. “We want it to be reliable.”

Some of the bridges along the proposed 22-mile passenger rail line are wooden and over a century old. Riley Gerbrandt, a commission engineer, said his team was looking to replace deteriorating bridge segments with prefabricated concrete, steel and other modern bridge types that are cost efficient and more easily repaired.

Intercity rail preference 

At Thursday’s meeting, the commission also approved its staff’s recommendation to align with California’s state rail plan, with the idea of attracting more state and federal funding. The decision removes light rail as an option, which has slower vehicles, more stops and overhead power lines.

Remaining options for the type of vehicles that could be used on the passenger rail line include:

• Locomotive-hauled trains, which are faster and carry more passengers but also use more energy. 
• Multiple unit trains, which are also fast and carry many passengers but have limited flexibility to add and remove coaches.

The RTC has considered different vehicle types. (Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission)

A conceptual report with details on station locations, travel times and cost estimates was expected to be released this month. But it was delayed until summer amid uncertainty over the Trump administration’s far-reaching federal funding cuts.

After the conceptual report, the commission must do an environmental analysis, secure portions of the rail corridor right-of-way that are privately owned, and finish the rail’s design. The commission has yet to secure all of the funding for these steps.

Construction was expected to begin no earlier than 2032, but the changes in available funding may have delayed the timeline.

Potential passenger rail stations were outlined in a March Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission staff report. (Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission)

Survey results

At the end of 2024, commission staff surveyed hundreds of residents about their preferences for passenger rail. Of the 20 potential stations under consideration, respondents said they would be most likely to begin or end their trip at 41st Avenue in Capitola, at Pacific Avenue and Beach Street near the Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf, and in Aptos. 

Many respondents also expressed a desire for train service to extend to Santa Cruz’s Westside, including to Natural Bridges Drive.

Survey respondents were asked where they wanted the Santa Cruz rail line to end and where they wanted a station near Cabrillo College. (HDR and AIM Consulting)

Recreation, shopping and work topped a list of purposes for riding a train in Santa Cruz County in a recent survey. (HDR and AIM Consulting)

About 18% of respondents said they would primarily use the train to commute to work, 6% said they would use it to get to school, 20% said they would use it for shopping, 17% said they would use it to connect to other parts of California and 31% said they would use it for recreation. An additional 8% of respondents said they would ride it to the beach.

Nearly three-quarters of respondents said they would access the train by walking or biking, 6% said they would take the bus to the train and 18% said they would drive there. Nearly 90% of cyclists said they would rather bring their bike on the train than lock it at the station. 

Noise and safety were among the top concerns expressed by respondents, as well as the train line’s cost. “Stop wasting taxpayer dollars on an impossible pork barrel project,” Gary Sultana wrote to the commission.

Regional Transportation Commission staff and rail supporters have said passenger rail would connect the most populous areas of the county and provide a climate-friendly alternative to driving Highway 1 and other traffic-clogged streets. The rail line passes within a mile of more than 90 parks, 40 schools and about half of the county’s population, the commission said.

Noise, safety and other common concerns were captured from participants in recent Regional Transportation Commission workshops. (HDR and AIM Consulting)

History and division

Plans for passenger train service in Santa Cruz County have been in the works for years. The Regional Transportation Commission purchased the rail line from Union Pacific for $14.2 million in 2012.

Various reports have come out since then, including a 2020 analysis of potential transit options and possible station locations. At times, the process has stalled due to money shortages and fights over whether a passenger rail line should be built alongside a walking and biking path or abandoned in favor of a walking and biking path. 

In 2022, nearly three-quarters of Santa Cruz County voters rejected Measure D, which tried to prioritize the walking and bike path over passenger rail. That fight continues to be debated, including at Thursday’s meeting.

“I really want to see us put a trail in right now,” said Santa Cruz County Supervisor Kim De Serpa. “We should not have to wait,” even if it means pulling up the existing rail tracks, De Serpa said.

Watsonville City Councilmember Vanessa Quiroz-Carter, a commission member, responded that a trail would not be useful for her. “I need a train,” she said. “It’s feasible, other counties have figured it out, and the fact that we keep having this conversation is pretty ridiculous to me. We keep hearing the same tired arguments over and over.”

The Regional Transportation Commission consists of all five members of the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors, one member each from the Watsonville, Santa Cruz, Scotts Valley and Capitola city councils, three members appointed by the Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District, and one Caltrans official.

The commission’s next meeting will take place April 3. 

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