(The following story by Brian Seals appeared on the Santa Cruz Sentinel website on January 17.)
SCOTTS VALLEY, Calif. — Casual walks and bike rides along the rails in Santa Cruz County might become more costly as Union Pacific Railroad says it is redoubling efforts to combat trespassing on its rail lines.
Maintenance crews were working this week along the line. As they were removing brush they were giving verbal warnings to passersby, telling them of possible $2,000 fines and saying that signs would be posted in the coming weeks. They told walkers that Union Pacific police would begin to enforce the measure and seek help from area law enforcement.
“A big misconception about railroads is people think its public property,” said Union Pacific spokeswoman Zoe Richmond. “The tracks and the area around the tracks are owned by the railroad company. It’s just like using your neighbor’s yard as a recreational area.”
Union Pacific crews were clearing brush to allow for greater visibility for trains.
“We didn’t want people thinking we were clearing a path for them,” said Dewayne Hillman, manager of track maintenance for the company.
He said verbal warnings were all about safety.
“We don’t want anyone getting killed or maimed out there,” Hillman said. “It’s about public safety.”
New trespassing signs are on the way and will be posted at trestles and heavily traveled areas, he said. Signs have been posted over the years, but are often defaced, he said.
The rail line has over the decades become a well-used path, especially in Capitola, Live Oak and Santa Cruz. Bikers and walkers are a common sight.
At the same time, there have been accidents.
Most recently, a man lost his leg last September after he was hit by a Union Pacific Railroad freight train in the Seascape area.
The Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission is in negotiations to buy the rail line, with an eye toward one day creating a rail-trail public use corridor. The commission struck a preliminary deal in November 2004 for the 32-mile line that runs from Watsonville to Davenport.
Curt Prater said he was disappointed in the new emphasis on trespassing as he uses the rail line often.
“It’s a major inconvenience,” Prater said. “I walk my dog on the tracks every morning.”
Prater said he sees people there every day.
Bicycle advocate Micah Posner of the group People Power, which has performed a sort of guerilla trail maintenance along the tracks in the past for better bike traveling, said the rail line was a well-used transportation link.
“The public uses that line for transportation to an incredible degree,” Posner said. “If Union Pacific is concerned about liability, they should sell the line.”
In places like Capitola, gawkers on the trestle are a common sight, especially in the summer.
Capitola Police Chief Richard Ehle said he was unaware if Union Pacific had contacted his department, but said he would assist the company if asked as there are plenty of children, residents and visitors that walk the line there. But he said the more vigorous policy would need to be publicized before actual harsher enforcement begins as people have become accustomed to using the line.
“There has been a 50-year experience using the tracks,” Ehle said. “It’s something new and different and people don’t expect it.”
In the county, the rail line between Park Avenue and Aptos Street is a trouble spot for drunkenness, loitering and camping, said sheriff’s Sgt. Fred Plageman.
The department occasionally cites people for trespassing along the corridor, he said.
“We’re more than pleased to cooperate with Union Pacific in enforcing that,” Plageman said. “We find the railroad tracks serve as a conduit for people involved in criminal activity.”
The Sheriff’s Office has not made trespassing for simply walking or biking on the rails a priority, but he said people “need to realize it’s better to walk on a public sidewalk.” He added that the rails in some parts of the county have been the scene of assaults and robberies.
Union Pacific has no immediate plans to increase the speed limit, now at 10 mph, but may in the future as it upgrades its infrastructure, Hillman said. He said if that were to happen, the increase would be well-publicized before going into effect.