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VCTC outlines Santa Paula Branch Line trail update, eyes Sycamore and Old Telegraph alternatives
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Summary
Ventura County Transportation Commission staff presented a master‑plan update and programmatic EIR for the 27–32 mile Santa Paula Branch Line corridor, describing rail-with-trail and off‑alignment options near Fillmore, agricultural compatibility measures, and an EIR schedule that could complete in about a year.
Amanda Fagan, director of planning and sustainability at the Ventura County Transportation Commission, told the Fillmore Planning Commission that VCTC has restarted work to update the Santa Paula Branch Line trail master plan and prepare a programmatic environmental impact report covering the corridor from Montalvo to Piru.
The presentation traced the corridor’s history and ownership, noted that VCTC purchased the branch line in the 1990s to preserve a multimodal corridor, and said the update will revisit the 2000 master plan while preparing a programmatic EIR. Fagan said the commission contracted WSP in March 2025 to update the master plan and that technical studies will begin in January with EIR drafting targeted to begin in February and finish roughly a year later.
Fagan said the project is being planned as a rails‑with‑trails approach in many places — a multiuse path alongside active rail — but the update will evaluate alternatives, including deviations from the railroad corridor to local streets (notably Sycamore Road and Old Telegraph Road) where right‑of‑way constraints exist. She said a Sycamore/Old Telegraph alignment could avoid costly additions to the railroad bridge at Sespe Creek by restriping or adding a protected bike lane across existing road bridges, which could reduce costs compared with building a cantilevered trail adjacent to the rail bridge.
Agricultural compatibility and landowner concerns are central to the EIR scope, Fagan said. VCTC plans to analyze vandalism, litter, liability, trespass, farm equipment crossings and any potential loss of farmland for buffers. The commission will revisit and build on a 2015 trail compatibility survey and consider mitigation strategies such as indemnification provisions, fencing, closure policies during spraying or bridal (sic) operations, and management practices. Fagan said VCTC is exploring the AGRESPECT program — an agricultural outreach and education model used in Napa Valley — for adaptation in the Heritage Valley.
Commissioners pressed on safety and crossings of State Route 126. Fagan said transportation and traffic impacts are part of the EIR analysis and that there are roughly three SR‑126 crossings near Fillmore that could require bridges or other treatments; VCTC is also pursuing a multimodal corridor grant application to Caltrans to study SR‑126 in more detail. Lighting impacts and wildlife crossings will be included in the biological and aesthetic analyses, she added.
Fagan described robust community engagement to date — technical and community advisory committees, pop‑up events (including one in Fillmore), small group listening sessions, an interactive pin map and a public scoping meeting on December 11. She noted the formal scoping period was scheduled to close on December 21, but that VCTC will continue to accept input during the master plan process.
Why it matters: the master plan and EIR will provide the policy and environmental framework that could unlock state and federal funding and guide how the trail is routed through agricultural lands, downtown Fillmore, and key creek crossings. The analysis will also shape what mitigations and design features are required to balance active‑transportation goals with farm operations and wildlife habitat.
“I will often use the term ‘right of way’ when talking about the branch line,” Fagan said, explaining that the VCTC‑owned corridor includes roughly 99 parcels and extends about 32 miles. “This is a rails‑with‑trails project where a multiuse path is planned to run primarily along the railroad tracks with continued active rail operations.”
Next steps: VCTC will continue technical studies through the winter, draft the programmatic EIR in the coming year and maintain multiple opportunities for public comment. The commission also encouraged the public and stakeholders to submit comments via the project email and the VCTC website.
Fagan said grant timelines provide some schedule pressure; she told commissioners the project has grant obligations with a likely completion window for the work extending to about 2027 for some funding, but that the programmatic EIR itself could be completed in roughly a year.
No formal action by the Fillmore Planning Commission was taken on the presentation; commissioners used the item for questions and feedback that VCTC will incorporate into the master plan and EIR process.
