California's five year rail plan calls for restoring the Del Monte Express from San Francisco to Monterey. The service, which last ran in 1972, would be operated by Amtrak. The tracks run through the small, featureless, town of Marina a few miles north of Monterey.

The Transportation Agency for Monterey County (TAMC) recently voted to extend Caltrain service to Salinas. All well and good. But within minutes after voting for the Salinas service, Marina's representative on the TAMC board, a city councilman, threatened to block the Del Monte service to Monterey because he didn't want a train "rumbling" through his town. He then went on to declare that he is "pro-rail."

This councilman is part of a far left environmental group that claims to have a better idea: a solar powered light rail car that would connect just the three local cities of Salinas, Marina and Monterey. He has even gone as far as to propose a city ordinance that would ban diesel locomotives from Marina, so that only his solar contraption could enter the town. He claims a $65,000 prototype will undergo testing in Santa Cruz later this month.

If this man is successful at demonizing conventional trains, whether by ordinance or just scare tactics, it will effectively kill any hope of getting a train into Monterey. If Marina won't let it through it won't happen.

Plus I really want to ask this guy whether his machine will run after 4:30pm in December.

quote:

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Originally posted by MPALMER:
millions of $ of trackwork remain.

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According to the California 5-Year Rail Plan the cost to upgrade the Monterey branch line is $24 million. A total of $354 million in upgrades are planned for the entire Coast Corridor (LA to SF). That figure includes about $60 million in equipment purchases. What I don't see included is the cost to construct a platform in Seaside.