County voters should reject Measure D
As former Executive Directors of the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission (“RTC”), we spent our professional lives encouraging county residents to envision and take concrete steps toward building a sustainable, affordable and diverse multi-modal transportation system that meets the varied needs of local families, businesses, students and visitors.
Since we understand that anyone who moves around our county has a strong opinion about what should be done, we invited public input in countless ways during our 30-plus years at the RTC. One thing the public has made perfectly clear: Our communities want sustainable transportation options. Our communities want the Coastal Rail Trail that's already being built within the rail corridor and we want to explore clean energy passenger rail service along the coast for the future.
The `Green'way initiative on the June 2022 Primary ballot runs counter to these clear community wishes and to the RTC's own sound transportation policies.
We strongly oppose Measure D. Here's why we urge you to vote No on Measure D:
• Measure D is intentionally deceptive: it's one of those convoluted initiatives where voting “No” means saying yes to continuing to build the coastal trail and explore future clean energy transportation options, whereas voting “yes” means rejecting those options.
• Measure D claims it would create a linear park. Instead, the Coastal Rail Trail would be replaced with a paved roadway: “two lanes of wheeled traffic… a divider, and a separate walkway for pedestrians, with a shoulder on both sides.” (from Measure D)
• Measure D is not green. Measure D would set us back half a century by amending the County General Plan to eliminate county support for planning for clean energy passenger rail. People want to do the right thing for the future! It's hard to change our driving habits when all choices lead to roads.
• Measure D is bad for transportation equity. Measure D's elimination of rail options would disproportionately impact South and Mid-county families, young people and nondrivers.
• Measure D would delay development of our 50-mile Coastal Trail around Monterey Bay that's already being built as a wide, world-class bike and pedestrian pathway. Measure D would make us start all over again, delaying trail construction for years.
• Measure D touts a bike path that would be 1 or 2 feet wider in places, but the Coastal Rail Trail is already wider than standard widths. Replacing two new energy-efficient transportation options with only one, and all for a slightly wider path, is not efficient transportation policy.
• Measure D claims it would preserve future rail options, but it does not. Tearing out the rail line requires U.S. Surface Transportation Board approval of “railbanking” for both the coast rail line and the Felton branch line owned by Roaring Camp Railroads. Recently, the public spoke overwhelmingly against isolating Roaring Camp, and railbanking has rarely resulted in re-established rail service.
We're extremely lucky to have a publicly-owned, continuous and active rail corridor connecting the populated coastal part of North County with growing Mid- and South County, and with the rest of California. There used to be a railroad that went over the hill from Santa Cruz to San Jose, but that right-of-way was sold off after Highway 17 was built. Measure D would make that same mistake again.
Deceptive and not-green Measure D would move us backward, not forward. With climate change pressing heavily upon us and the Coastal
Rail Trail already open in some places, we need to continue investing in our existing transportation infrastructure - not tear it out and stamp “cancel” on future clean energy options.
Please vote No on measure
D.