The truth hurts.

1) Highest and best use for the rail row through the Eel River Canyon is a 1st class
hiking/biking trail. Highest and best use in Marin is probably a bike path.

2) Freight in this region does not remove trucks from the freeway. Any savings are offset by the added traffic associated with a container port. Rail advocates wants to ignore this, but
since its part of the NWP business plan submitted to the state, we might as well take it at face value.

3) NWP will operate freight trains whenever it feels like, as long as it doesn't interfere with SMART passenger train. Consequently, SMART will push more freight trains into night time operations. Duh.

4) Freight trains operating at night will lower property values of impacted properties.

5) Once Sonoma communities wake up to what's coming their way, it'll be the end for freight rail, but not the end of SMART. With NCRA out of the way, SMART will likely be able to pass its needed tax measure. However, since the NCRA is not going away any time soon, the SMART tax measure for Nov '08 is doomed. It's probably DOA because of the recession, which is going to get worse before it gets better. (Economy could be at bottom in November and that's if it is a mild recession.)