There was some bad news for Sierra Northern Railway, the freight train company that runs the Santa Cruz rail line.
There was some bad news for Sierra Northern Railway, the freight train company that runs the Santa Cruz rail line. Cement manufacturer Cemex of Davenport announced that it would be shutting down its local operations. Cemex was Sierra’s largest customer. The line isn’t important just to Cemex, though. County transportation officials are required to contract with a freight train provider if it is to acquire the 32-mile rail line, and the plan is to build a bike track and hiking trail adjacent to it. Without the track, there can be no trail.
For now though, Sierra Northern Railway isn’t ready to call it quits. It is currently looking to find alternative clients, convincing them to transfer their transportation costs from trucks to trains. Some companies have already expressed interest. “It is a cheaper way to go,” says Michelle Barr of Pajaro Valley Cold Storage, which wants to go back to using trains, and other companies could follow the company’s lead.
Mike Barr of Sierra Northern Railway is confident. Even without Cemex, rail transport in Santa Cruz County is far from dead. Read more at the Santa Cruz Sentinel.
