ROARING CAMP REJECTS RTC’S PLAN TO FORCE ABANDONMENT OF RAIL LINE

Regional Transportation Commission to consider plan that threatens Roaring
Camp rail line, as well as future of rail transportation in Santa Cruz
County

FELTON, CA – JANUARY 19, 2022 – Roaring Camp, Inc. (Roaring Camp), operator
of the Santa Cruz, Big Trees & Pacific Railway, today called upon the Santa
Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) to reject at its Feb.
3, 2022, meeting the hostile attempt proposed by RTC staff to initiate a
process that aims to force abandonment of the Felton Branch Rail Line.
Forced abandonment of the line, which is wholly owned by Roaring Camp, would
remove Roaring Camp’s right to utilize the rail line for freight use. Loss
of the right to freight us would have a highly negative impact on Roaring
Camp’s business and would represent the first step in a larger, special
interests-fueled effort to end rail service in Santa Cruz County.

Roaring Camp released the following statement from CEO Melani Clark:

“Roaring Camp is strongly opposed to the RTC’s proposed action to pursue
forced abandonment of the rail line we’ve owned and operated since 1984
because doing so will seriously harm our local, family-run, women-owned
business, and our local economy. The RTC’s proposal represents an aggressive
attack on our railroad and rail transportation in our county, fueled by
special interests that are lobbying hard to end rail in Santa Cruz County.
We encourage our community to join Roaring Camp in standing up against this
poorly conceived, shortsighted move.

Roaring Camp’s diversified business operates in both North County and South
County, and includes freight and tourist trains. Forced abandonment of the
Felton Branch Rail Line will cause multiple adverse impacts for Roaring
Camp, beginning with a permanent end to freight operations, which removes
rail service as an option for local businesses.

Roaring Camp is under contract to provide freight service on the Santa Cruz
Branch Rail Line through an agreement reached with the freight operator in
2021, including in South County where we are currently seeing growth in our
services for multiple local industries. However, due to inaction by the RTC
to repair two bridges, currently freight service is prevented from running
the full distance between Santa Cruz and Watsonville (and beyond).
Responsibility for the lack of access to freight services for local
businesses north of Watsonville rests with the RTC under its agreement with
the freight operator. This unfortunate circumstance is holding back our
community in terms of economic development that supports job and income
growth, and as an important strategy in the fight against climate change –
freight-by-rail accounts for only 2% of greenhouse gas emissions, compared
to 24% coming from trucks on roadways, according to the U.S. EPA.

In North County, the threatened loss of Roaring Camp’s right to freight
service is especially alarming as we look ahead to the rebuilding process in
the wake of the CZU Lightning Complex fire that destroyed approximately 900
homes in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Rail presents a critical advantage as we
confront rising materials prices and trucking shortages, with freight rail
serving as a dependable, cost-effective and greener alternative. Freight
rail also represents a potential tool for our community as we consider how
to prepare for future climate-related disasters that may require the need to
deliver emergency water and emergency fire-fighting assets to the region.

Roaring Camp’s tourist train operations are also threatened by the RTC’s
forced abandonment plans. Our tourist trains carry approximately 200,000 –
250,000 guests per year (pre-pandemic), with a very large portion of those
guests staying in area hotels, contributing to the local economy and tax
base. Our beach train operations that run from Felton to the Santa Cruz
Beach Boardwalk remove approximately 9,000 cars off the road during busy
summer months. Forced abandonment represents a serious overreach of local
government and is a clear threat to our business including the more than 60
permanent employees who work for Roaring Camp, as well as many more seasonal
employees.

But make no mistake, the RTC’s proposal goes well beyond impacting Roaring
Camp; the proposal is clearly part of a larger scheme that will have
permanent and deeply negative impacts for our entire county. Should the
Felton Line be declared abandoned, Roaring Camp’s rail line will be the
first domino to fall in a series of moves that would conclude with
abandonment of the Santa Cruz Branch Rail Line (SCBRL) that runs the length
of Santa Cruz County. Abandonment of the SCBRL will result in the permanent
end to any possibility of passenger rail service for Santa Cruz County. The
RTC’s potential aggressive action against Roaring Camp should serve as a
major wake-up call for anyone who is interested in a future that includes
both a rail and a trail system for our county. This isn’t just about Roaring
Camp. It’s about our entire community and our future.

The RTC’s forced abandonment of the Felton Branch Rail Line also represents
a breach of trust and a betrayal of a commitment. Roaring Camp was urged by
local elected officials to give up its right of first refusal to purchase
the Santa Cruz Branch Rail line from Union Pacific. My family was assured
the rail line was an extremely important asset to the county, that the RTC
had worked hard to line up funding from the state and that the sale to the
RTC was for the benefit of the entire community. Roaring Camp was assured
the line would be used for rail, thanks to funding from Proposition 116,
which specifically calls for a commitment to rail service. In response,
Roaring Camp cleared the way for the RTC to purchase the line. Now, the RTC
is targeting Roaring Camp’s Felton Branch Rail Line as the first step toward
forced abandonment of the full Santa Cruz Branch Rail Line and a betrayal of
a commitment made to future rail that was made to Roaring Camp, the people
of Santa Cruz County and the State of California.

Roaring Camp has decades of history providing rail service in Santa Cruz
County and we continue to be devoted to delivering quality transportation
and recreation opportunities for local residents and businesses, as well as
visitors. We look forward to engaging with our community in the fight to
stop the RTC’s attempt to force abandonment of the Felton Branch Rail Line.”

ABOUT ROARING CAMP, INC.
Incorporated in 1958, privately held Roaring Camp, Inc. (Roaring Camp)
operates two railroads, including the Redwood Forest Steam Train and the
Santa Cruz Big Trees & Pacific Railway. Roaring Camp also owns the historic
Felton Branch Rail Line, which is eight miles long and runs across a 1909
steel truss bridge and passes through a tunnel in Santa Cruz that was built
in 1875. Norman Clark founded Roaring Camp and ran the business until his
passing in 1985, after which his wife, Georgiana assumed ownership and
management responsibilities. She was succeeded as CEO by Georgiana and
Norman’s daughter, Melani Clark. Roaring Camp is a woman-owned business,
with majority shareholders that include Melani Clark and her two sisters.
Visit www.roaringcamp.com for more information.