Posted by

Public Workshops: Monterey Bay Sanctuary Scenic Trail

There’s gotta be a better way….

There is! Monterey County and Santa Cruz County are becoming better connected for people who bike!  Click here to learn more about the Monterey Bay Sanctuary Scenic Trail Network.

* * *

For the latest information about the Monterey Bay Sanctuary Scenic Trail Network’s Monterey County section, e.g.,  Monterey Bay Sanctuary Scenic Trail – May 2016 update (PDF), check with the Transportation Agency for Monterey County: http://www.tamcmonterey.org/programs/bike-pedestrian/. 

* * *

This Watsonville resident works at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula. Above, he’s in the Elkhorn Slough area, Moss Landing, on his bike commute home from work.  He enjoys biking, just wishes there was a safer way for bicyclists and pedestrians to travel between Santa Cruz and Monterey Counties.

Riding against traffic, as he tried out above, is illegal and dangerous.

Below: A Santa Cruz woman and her granddaughter on a Class I bike path in Seaside…

Step by step, progress is being made.  While it isn’t happening as lightning fast as most people  would like, every bit of progress is worth celebrating–and supporting. The vision is for a Scenic Trail Network from Lovers Point in Pacific Grove, Monterey County to the Santa Cruz-San Mateo County line.  For more info on this site, see “Let’s get connected:  Watsonville workshop on Monterey Bay Sanctuary Scenic Trail,” and  “Monterey Bay Sanctuary Scenic Trail.”  Also see “Visits from our Santa Cruz neighbors.”

Tell your friends about the upcoming workshops in Davenport, Santa Cruz, and Watsonville!

Monterey Bay Sanctuary Scenic Trail Network

Public Workshops Coming Soon

The Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission’s (RTC) is in the midst of planning for the Monterey Bay Sanctuary Scenic Trail Network (Scenic Trail Network) project and will solicit public input during community workshops. The first round of workshops will be held on December 13th, 14th, and 15th in North (Davenport), Mid (Santa Cruz), and South (Watsonville) Santa Cruz County locations respectively.  Spanish translation will be available in Watsonville.

The county-wide Scenic Trail Network project merges plans for a bicycle/pedestrian trail along the rail line, often referred to as the “rail trail,” with coastal alignments and neighborhood spur trails. The resulting network will overlap and converge with existing paths to provide convenient route choices. The trail will serve transportation, recreation and interpretive uses for walkers, joggers, bicyclists, wheelchair users, locals and visitors, and will eventually form a ring around the bay to provide increased coastal access to the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. A highlight of the Scenic Trail Network is that it will provide more opportunities to get around Santa Cruz County without the use of a car and away from automobile traffic.

During the December workshops, members of the public will hear a presentation about the Scenic Trail Network project scope and will be able to review detailed maps of preliminary alignments. Other topics that may be addressed during the workshop include: which destinations and existing paths should the trail connect to, how can the trail be designed to benefit the greatest number of users, how will trail design and use be coordinated with freight and passenger rail service, and how and when will the Scenic Trail Network be built and funded. The final work product will be a Master Plan, a draft of which will be released during the summer of 2012, with priority segments identified for construction as funding is secured.  In addition, an environmental review document conforming to the California Environmental Quality Act will be prepared concurrently to guide the development of the Master Plan.

All Community Workshops will be held from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at the following locations.

More information, including project history and a brochure for the public workshops in English and Spanish, can be accessed on the RTC’s website: http://sccrtc.org/projects/multi-modal/monterey-bay-sanctuary-scenic-trail/

For information about the Regional Transportation Commission’s projects and programs, please log on to www.sccrtc.org or call 831.460-3200.

The above press release was provided 11/29/11 by:

 Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission

1523 Pacific Avenue, Santa Cruz, CA  95060

phone (831) 460-3200 ~ fax (831) 460-3215

email: info@sccrtc.org; website: www.sccrtc.org

 

CONTACT: 

George Dondero, Executive Director

Cory Caletti, Senior Transportation Planner/Project Manager

Karena Pushnik, Senior Transportation Planner/Outreach Coordinator

 

 

This post was published on 29 November 2011. One or more changes last made to this post on 31 January 2018.

Leave a Reply