Here's a look into plan for a 300-mile trail from San Francisco Bay to Humboldt Bay

[@wmtrader]

Restoring the tracks to allow freight and passenger trains to run up to Eureka would do more for the economy of the north coast than what a hiking/biking trail could do. It would also reduce cars and freight trucks on highway 101 between Santa Rosa and Eureka. Stations could be built along the right of way that serve as access points to trails that go up into the mountains, down along the rivers/creeks, and out the coast.

[@frankmacleod2565]

Trails on private land? Not sure the landowners would agree to that

[@snoopyboobs]

lol, knope. People love to fantasize about trains but in a lot (most) situations trucks and buses are more affordable and practical. They rail banked it so if it's ever needed as a railroad it could happen.

[@etischer]

Happy to see my tax dollars going into projects like this! Would love to do a 300 mile bike packing trip along this route. In a few decades... let's get this project moving before it doubles in cost!

[@frankmacleod2565]

contracts are already going out. It'll take a few years, not decades

[@etischer]

@@frankmacleod2565 @5:36 the executive director said realistically the full contiguous trail would be completed in a few or couple decades.

[@frankmacleod2565]

@@etischer Oh well sure, the full line is literally hundreds of miles through rough mountainous terrain. I'm already working on a contract for a portion of the line. It will take a while to get all of it done. Take a look at the history of the Northwestern Pacific Railroad and you'll see some of the issues they're facing. Look up the term "blue goo" or blue slide, there are a lot of big landslides out in that canyon.

[@weirdmatter]

😆 let's throw money away on a trail that would cost money to upkeep before it doubles in cost. Please, people need food and shelter not a trail.

[@miken1463]

This project has been championed by the Rails to Trails Organization. I have been a proud member for over 20 years. They are the source of so many pedestrian, bike and horse trails all across the country.

[@cardinalstar2048]

Im gearing up now!!! 🚴‍♀️🚴‍♀️🚴‍♀️🚴‍♀️

[@JamesMaynardMoreland]

I bet we get this before the high speed rail.

[@frankmacleod2565]

Construction has begun on the high speed rail to Vegas

[@snoopyboobs]

High speed rail in california is a fantasy. Look to florida if you want to see how rail can be done.

[@raymarks7430]

Great! This will bring much needed revenue to the area and give many of us a new safer way to travel on foot or bike outdoors from Humboldt to SF

[@phototristan]

Will it be paved? Would be an awesome bicycle trip.

[@MrMountain707]

It better allow mountain bikes

[@conorreynolds9739]

The reason they had to shut down the rail service (unstable geology leading to catastrophic landslides) won’t cease to be a problem simply because it’s now a pedestrian trail.

[@three69]

Bring back the rail road, these gas prices are killing me.

[@nockee]

This would be amazing. The current bike route option is dangerous and puts you on hwy 101 for long sections. This would be good for cars, cyclists and drivers. I wish I would see this in my lifetime but it’s good to for the future.

[@EpistleX]

Oh hell to the no we are not doing a trail of tears!!!!!!!

[@robertharker]

Does the state already own the rail road right of way? Or does the state still need to purchase it or large chunks of it?

[@lisavitale8410]

The Redwood Trail sounds amazing.

[@MrDjslav5]

Good interview. Looks awesome! Well done everyone.

[@PatrickFaith]

I would love this, it’s important to keep this safe.

[@VF180s]

Hopefully park Rangers can keep it from becoming a homeless encampment

[@ryanwaterbury7069]

more connectivity with redwoods please!

[@lalodaniels1388]

Or, even better, they can turn it into a passenger rail line instead. Then, people can get to Humboldt Bay quicker.

[@frankmacleod2565]

great, you can pony up the billions of dollars it would take to build the line

[@user-ke9yk5qp3u]

Yes, let's spend $1 billion and maybe get 20 people per week to use it! 😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@lalodaniels1388]

@@user-ke9yk5qp3u we can get that one billion dollars from the hundreds of billions we send to Ukraine and Israel. I would say this is still more well spent than that. Plus if you put nice trails at the stops and along the way you'll get more riders.

[@user-ke9yk5qp3u]

@@lalodaniels1388 👎

[@Mr152008]

@@lalodaniels1388👍

[@lumberjackdreamer6267]

Amazing!

[@vagabondroller]

Environmentalists: RAIL IS THE MOST EFFICIENT FORM OF OVERLAND TRAVEL!!! MORE TRAINS, LESS CARS! Also environmentalists: LETS TURN EXISTING RAIL INFRASTRCTURE INTO BIKE TRAILS!!! Seriously people, once we lose a rail line, we never get it back. Just because it isn’t being used right now doesn’t mean it won’t be needed in the future.

[@katwashere194]

Lol this rail line is no longer usable by trains. Take it easy 😂

[@wmtrader]

@@katwashere194 - It can be made usable one again with repairs.

[@user-ke9yk5qp3u]

Bring it!!

[@journeyoflovelight]

The trail will be through Alderpoint the town that was taken over by Weed Growers. How are they going to assure hikers safety through the Emerald Triangle?

[@LuckyBaldwin777]

Newsflash: weed is legal now.

[@muskrat3291]

@@LuckyBaldwin777 Newsflash: The area is infested with illegal grows.

[@journeyoflovelight]

@@LuckyBaldwin777 News Flash.. Not all grows are legal. Illegal grows pop up all the time. There guarded and some are booby trap. I lived growing in the area. Im guessing you have no idea. look up illegal grows in emerald triangle.

[@frankmacleod2565]

weed is legal now, there's no danger

[@user-ke9yk5qp3u]

Dude! You're stuck in the past!

[@santarosa6676]

I’ll be gearing up for 2060!! Can’t wait

[@peterbedford2610]

Youre being very optimistic

[@Johnnyred51]

There are some impassable parts of the old North Western Railroad due to tunnel and bridge closures. This may require more planning than anticipated. Otherwise, I hope it works!

[@mrm4557]

During the politics and bureaucracy of Bay Area, I won't be surprised that it takes until my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-granchildrn Will most probably not even see it

[@frankmacleod2565]

The bay area is at the end of the line only. The trail is not in the bay area

[@s.terris9537]

Sounds wonderful! Great investment!

[@celebrityrog]

FOUR DECADES in the making? That means, there is no reason it will ever be done, it will cost more than just rebuilding the railroad as an operational scenic tourist line. Will there be any water, food, shelter, charging areas, police and medical along the trail? Cell service? You're basically making a pedestrian highway. WHY?

[@chrissknutson]

Go team go!

[@porsche187]

She sounds like a robot ….

[@Thomas-fy9yc]

It’s sounds awesome, but it’s California so it’ll never get done.

[@frankmacleod2565]

we're working on it already. Contracts are out. Try again

[@skatetoexplorevideos2477]

Who the hell is going to walk or bike 300 miles?

[@Kitty8791]

-AIDS Ride: 575-miles San Francisco to Los Angeles. -Cycle for the Cause: 275-miles Boston to NYC -Tour de France: 2200-miles (riders average 100-miles/day) -Pacific Crest Trail: hike 2625-miles in ~5‐months All sorts of people participate in these types of events. They'll likely ride or walk this trail start to finish.

[@kenmcclow8963]

I would ride my bike on a 300 mile trail. The Katy Trail in Missouri is over 200 miles. The Cowboy Trail in Nebraska is 300 miles. The Silver Comet in Georgia and Alabama is about 180. The Erie Canal Trail in New York is 330 miles. The GAP and C&O trails together are around 200-300 miles from Pittsburgh to DC. The Palouse to Cascade in Washington is 300 miles and it’s part of the 3700 mile Great American Rail Trail with the GAP and C&O at the other end. I could go on because there are lots of local trails that you can sometimes string together for a longer ride. The cool thing about some of the old railroads is they tended to have towns about every 10 miles so the train could replenish water and wood, or coal, and that is also a good distance for a bike ride to stop for a drink, snack, meal or bed depending on how capable the rider is. Part of the fun of distance riding is finding things to do in the towns along the way too

[@Kitty8791]

@@kenmcclow8963 Bay Circuit Trail in Massachusetts now connects 230-miles from Newburyport to Duxbury. I hadn't ridden in ages & about a decade ago did ~50-miles, on an improperly sized hybrid bike, on the Erie Canal Trail. Thankfully, I wore bike shorts, but definitely felt it the next day.

[@briangarrison8732]

I did the Erie canal trail in upstate NY with my family last year and thoroughly enjoyed all 360 miles of it

[@wmtrader]

@@Kitty8791 - Professional road bike races on a bike path are not feasible, the pavement is only one car lane wide. Rides like AIDS Ride and Cycle for the Cause would have issues with the lack of services and access to the trail from the road.

[@ianstewart8301]

This can be done! Check out Virginia’s Capital Trail, which goes through several localities

[@kathyhapgood9589]

This project ignores the concerns of the local Indigenous tribes over untouched sacred sites along the Eel River and directly on the proposed trail. Sites and relics will be gone forever. As for the argument that the trail will bring tourist revenue, I'm not convinced. People hiking in the back country travel light. Families camp or stay in motels and Airb&Bs. They go to the grocery stores, gift shops, restaurants, gas stations. Our small towns have cracked and broken streets and sidewalks that look unwelcoming and need funding for repairs to help with tourism. The idea is wonderful but at what cost?

[@emergedbirch848]

You are really a hater it’s just a trail lady trump 2024

[@kathyhapgood9589]

​@@emergedbirch848 Just a lover of our local indigenous people and their fight to hold on to what little is left.

[@jasonlee-os1qi]

Fantastic!

[@FadedSTEELERSfan]

great a 300 mile homeless encampment.

[@VF180s]

It will be nice but most likely going to be a new homeless encampment like what happened along Santa Rosa creek trail😢

[@freddiecarr7602]

Stores closing, homeless rising, national guard needed in hot spots, pop-up street takeovers, drug use in public, tourists hiking the poop trail and they want to build a new trail------W---T----F---

[@ShoeString13]

Different train of thought. SF/

[@celebrityrog]

You realize the plan of this was back in the Reagan Administration. Long before the issues we have today. But since you mention it, what are you personally doing to help keep stores open, homelessness down and curbing drug use? What constructive solutions do you have?

[@frankmacleod2565]

you're talking about LA and San Francisco. California is a big state

[@ShoeString13]

Good question. You should learn what it is. Thanks for asking. SF/

[@ShoeString13]

-also we already did this in Texas.

[@markrobinowitz8473]

The nearby Willits bypass (only a couple miles long) cost about three hundred million dollars and directs traffic away from Willits businesses. Bike paths are much cheaper. And by the time this project may be done we may see substantially higher costs for energy since fossil fuels are finite (as in, they're running out, not that most people want to think about that).

[@martinantonio2760]

Sounds fun.. when can I run it…. lol

[@gigginbig3]

It will be known as californias giant homeless camp because let’s be honest a nature trail in this state at these times is probably not such a good idea lol

[@TreDeuce-qw3kv]

Reality; The homeless stay as near as they can to food and services. In other words... in Urban environments. Since there will be no vehicle access, the mobile homeless won't be an issue.

[@gigginbig3]

@@TreDeuce-qw3kv I beg to differ if it starts in San Francisco, then you can definitely guarantee a miles worth of this trail will be crowded, but I could be wrong and hopefully I am

[@ExcitedSnowMountain-jt4gq]

Homeless camping grounds . 😅

[@jlo2o199]

Exactly why it will be. Sketch

[@TubeYouTakashi]

This is very great plan for society.

[@DemPilafian]

So now we are calling our rural areas *_"impoverished communities"?_* Seriously? I'm all for working to improve everyone's opportunities and end poverty, but we really need to put an end to this ridiculous labeling and stereotyping. City dwellers on average do make more money, but rural people are not automatically poor. America is a very PROSPEROUS and WEALTHY country. Let's stop this narrative that everyone here is poor and repressed.

[@katwashere194]

We did this in Oregon but on a smaller scale. It’s awesome!

[@TheMontagPress]

300 Miles. $100M. A couple of decades? Sounds like a boondoggle.

[@gorongo4202]

The data show physical and mental health benefits, better social cohesion, economic opportunity for locals, among other things as is evidenced by other rails to trails projects. What’s data support your opinion? Help us understand this topic better.

[@LuckyBaldwin777]

Looks like it would be more fun for gas powered rail carts.

[@travisjanz4738]

People will be living on that trail illegally as soon as it’s done

[@FurthermoreJack]

Rail trails are the death of high speed rail

[@frankmacleod2565]

this line has been abandoned for decades

[@user-ke9yk5qp3u]

Good! We won't use them anyways! High speed rail to Humboldt? 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@wmtrader]

@@frankmacleod2565 - the railway could be repaired and put back into service for passenger and freight trains. It would reduce truck and car traffic on highway 101. It would bring a lot more tourist to the north coast than what a 300-mile long bike patch could ever do.

[@frankmacleod2565]

@@wmtrader Take a look at the history of the railroad. I've surveyed sections of it in 3 counties and have a contract to survey a 10 mile stretch right now. The railway would have to be built, not re-built. The cost would be prohibitive given the expected amount of use the train would receive. We get plenty of tourists here as it is, but thanks

[@wmtrader]

@@frankmacleod2565 - I know the railroad's history and I know the area. The cost would not be prohibitive and it would be cheaper than making improvements to highway 101 to accommodate the current and future demand.

[@jlo2o199]

Sounds like a sketchy trail

[@k.chriscaldwell4141]

Get mugged in the woods trail.

[@sideslash6938]

Lol I bet it’ll be horrible if it’s anywhere near San Francisco, I’d probably get robbed first step into the woods

[@Pppaajwjaow]

Woah I’m definitely gonna try it

[@AladeenZ32]

I'm sure this won't be a huge waste of money and be full of homeless people

[@ianstewart8301]

Oh man! That’s so cool!

[@anthonygermano9363]

Watch out for the Cartels.

[@frankmacleod2565]

cartels left town when the price of weed plummeted

[@vera02]

Green rush ended in 2017 cartel been gone for a while. They set up shop in Colorado and Michigan where the laws are more relaxed.

[@kathleenmccarthy8418]

So exciting! 😃

[@DemPilafian]

So now we are calling our rural areas *_"impoverished communities"?_* Oh please! I'm all for working to improve everyone's prosperity and end poverty, but we really need to put an end to this ridiculous labeling and stereotyping. City dwellers on average do make more money, but rural people are not automatically poor. America is a very PROSPEROUS and WEALTHY country. Let's stop this tankie narrative that everyone here is poor and repressed.

[@redefiningmyself8598]

Many rural areas in this wealthy nation are extremely poor. That is factual.

[@DemPilafian]

@@redefiningmyself8598 The activist literally said "mostly impoverished communities". Ridiculous. America is *NOT* a 3rd world country. Yes, we do have some poverty, but the average income in rural America would be considered wealthy in most countries. We've gotten to the point where you can't talk about anything (even a hiking trail) without someone jumping in and saying, _"But what about the poor?!?"_

[@alexsolo4085]

Wont happen, and shouldn’t happen

[@Attalla2023]

Who's loosing their land for this

[@justachipn3039]

You pathetic D's deleting the local's comments/input is just like you !!! You really do HATE are constitution and free speech thoughts and opinions if they're contrary to yours !!!

[@hsuehhs1]

Like the pathetic Conservatives always wanting to ban books because it makes white people uncomfortable

[@DingoAteMeBaby]

kinda sad to see these railroads getting torn up

[@frankmacleod2565]

The railroad fell into disrepair in the last century and was abandoned. Very unstable geology in the Eel River canyon

[@baybrad4159]

Cool

[@InTheYear]

🏃‍♂️ 🥾 🏔️ 🏕️

[@davidjackson7281]

The right of way should be converted to high speed rail.

[@frankmacleod2565]

it would cost billions

[@davidjackson7281]

@@frankmacleod2565 so?

[@frankmacleod2565]

@@davidjackson7281 and, California is already building a high-speed rail, down in the valley which is much more highly populated. A high speed rail to Humboldt, which is not highly populated, would be a waste of public funds in my opinion, given the other pressing needs this state faces at the moment. This is just my opinion

[@Mr152008]

@@frankmacleod2565Maybe not high speed rail but a rail connection would benefit both Eureka & the Bay Area. The greater Eureka area is an amazing summer getaway from rising temperatures in the Bay Area (it’s the only place that stays 65 in the summer besides parts of SF). On the other side, the economy is desperate for tourists; it’s beautiful to visit but it’s locked behind 6 hours of driving. Bottom line: It’s not a state priority but it should be one of those New Deal public works projects

[@frankmacleod2565]

@@Mr152008 again, the low expected use of such a train does not justify the incredibly high cost of constructing such a line. They tried it already. It failed. Too costly to maintain the railroad through all that canyon.

[@TheFrogfeeder]

Soooo, there’s not a $73+billion deficit?? It’s nice that us California taxpayers have all this extra tax money for extravagant and completely unnecessary things like this….

[@frankmacleod2565]

budget deficits come and go. The GDP of the state last year was in the trillions

[@justachipn3039]

Nice idea, but the cost will be 10x what they "figure" !!! Oh there will be this "unforeseen" bs that actually isn't... and they will be a wrecking ball all the way !!! Not only all of that... but the administrative cost will be staggering to the point of absurd !!!

[@k.chriscaldwell4141]

And, if EVER completed, a surprise toll/“fee” to use. Complete with “fee” enforcers jumping out and writing tickets. No, I’m not joking.

[@wmtrader]

@@k.chriscaldwell4141 - contracts on the 14-mile bike path/trail segment from Eureka to Arcata but not on the 300-mile segment from Eureka to Santa Rosa.

[@justachipn3039]

All comment screen shoot's saved to censuring file !!!

[@_ac_7649]

peloci train project

[@frankmacleod2565]

try again