Stubborn facts derail the train in Santa Cruz County
In this article originally posted in Lookout Santa Cruz, Bud Colligan addresses misinformation spread by the RTC and FORT. Bud Colligan is a longtime resident of Santa Cruz County, a local philanthropist and a proud supporter of Greenway.
“At some point, FORT and the RTC must take responsibility. It’s time to stop blaming others and look in the mirror”
Friends of the Rail and Trail (FORT) board chair Matt Farrell wrote a rebuttal to my commentary “The Train is Dead: Will someone please tell the RTC.” I am pleased to see that he essentially agrees with my main points. In my previous commentary, I said that the RTC’s Transit Corridors Alternatives Analysis emphasizes that a train will not affect Highway 1 traffic. Mr. Farrell says in his rebuttal, “Truth is, no one seriously thinks there is a solution to reducing congestion on Highway 1 — not a train, not bus-on-shoulder, not even highway widening.” We are in agreement.
Unfortunately, Mr. Farrell and FORT have been selling the public on a train reducing Highway 1 traffic for many years. For example, in a 2021 Facebook post, FORT says, “Shifting from highway to rail is a process that takes time, but a process that will reward us for years to come … and significantly reduce highway and road congestion in our county.”
So I ask, what do you really believe, Mr. Farrell?
We also have agreement on the width of the rail corridor and cost of the rail and trail. Mr. Farrell doesn’t dispute that both the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) and FORT have said for years that the trail is wide enough for both rail and trail, but now they grudgingly acknowledge it is not. “You can have both rail and trail in the corridor” has been their central promise. Now we can’t have both. Unless “both” means a narrow, discontinuous “trail” on city streets for at least 10 of the 32 miles.
On cost, Mr. Farrell does not dispute that the trail is now projected to cost over $500 million, four times what we were originally told. On the train, Mr. Farrell appears to understand we are now talking about a project that will cost $3 to $4 billion.
Next, Mr. Farrell and RTC Commissioner Mike Rotkin rely on the time-honored explanation of “someone else will pay for it” when discussing the $1 billion price tag to repair or replace bridges. It’s important to note that $1 billion is only for bridges and does not cover new tracks, trains, stations, crossings, quiet zones and other infrastructure. Mr. Farrell and Mr. Rotkin claim the federal government will pay 80% and the state will pay 5%-15% of the total cost.
This is wishful thinking given that a similar project like the SMART train in Sonoma/Marin has received in its lifetime only 4.3% of its total cost from the federal government and 4.8% from the state.
Over 50% of SMART’s funding has come from a local sales tax. A new sales tax for a train in Santa Cruz County is unavoidable. The City of Santa Cruz has a current sales tax rate of 9.75%. There isn’t much higher to go before hitting the state limit of 10%. A train tax would likely be in the range of 0.5% to 1%.
Finally, Mr. Farrell blames supporters of the trail for delaying it. Again, he conflates several issues. The RTC purchased the corridor in 2012 and FORT has been in existence since 2002. You would think that 13 or 23 years, respectively, would be sufficient time to build a simple trail.
The problem is that the Monterey Bay Sanctuary Scenic Trail (MBSST) “plan” of 2014 grossly underestimated the cost and difficulty of building a trail next to the tracks. The retaining walls, floating aqueducts, detours, replacement/repair of 23 bridges, drainage issues and other infrastructure have led to the fact that only 1.3 miles of trail is completed today. Yes, some other segments are in “planning” or “environmental review,” but they are running into the same cost overruns, unplanned obstacles, and long delays as the 1.3 miles completed and open to date.
At some point, FORT and the RTC must take responsibility. It’s time to stop blaming others and look in the mirror.
Bottom line, the people want a continuous safe trail on the rail corridor. The RTC should figure out how to satisfy the clear preference of the people without delay.