Thanks for your thoughts Gary, and I agree with all but a couple of nagging points. First, the timetable still showed this as FRA Excepted track, paramount with that is that it precludes passenger trains and Group 1 and 2 loaded hazmat cars. To upgrade the track to standards that relieves the burden of this problem, any group would need time and money- OERM has some of one and little of the other- but opinions would vary on this. The scope of that demand far outstrips the current possible resources, anyway.

Second, is that the SCRRA was basically given the track and ROW, with BNSF as the current freight carrier. That could change. Many shortlines now operate on previously owned BNSF track, and at some point the San Jacs will fade into something like that, if track records are to be looked at. Think about the Sierra Ry. from Riverbank to Oakdale.

Perhaps the future answer will be to approach the problem with a consortium of like-minded groups and pool resources to keep the branch alive. Ripping up track for the sake of short term gain and being relieved of maintenance seldom pays off in the 50 year plan for rail corridors for the reason you stated: NIMBYs and the cost of reconstituting a parcelled-out ROW. What would certainly help in my humble opinion is to cultivate more on-line shippers at the far end of the line. Good luck with that!