Please help us save the trees and protect clean air on the Padaro Lane portion of the California Coastal Trail, by stopping the Ortega Siding project, which will include building two new bridges over creeks and five smaller bridges over culverts, and the removal of hundreds of trees for over a mile -- all to lay a new steel rail right next to the road.
Most of the trees at risk are large, mature trees more than 100 years old. They include native Coastal Live Oaks, Pines, Cypress, and Sycamores, along with massive non-native Eucalyptus trees. These trees are part of the character of the trail and the coastal landscape, and they provide shade, habitat, and a buffer that helps keep the area cooler and more livable.
Removing so many trees will hurt the environment and the wildlife. There are two creeks and an abundance of wildlife that will be displaced or negatively affected by this project, including: Hawks & Raptors, Western Pond Turtles, Great Horned Owls, Ducks, Foxes, Bobcats, Hummingbirds, and Monarch Butterflies. (Yes, this is a known Monarch Butterfly sanctuary!)
There is a new program to help aid the migration of the Steelhead Trout from the ocean up Toro Canyon Creek. Building a new massive concrete bridge over this creek will hurt that migration.
This siding project will also damage the air quality for everyone who uses this route. Hundreds of cyclists, hikers, walkers, joggers, and beach goers pass through Padaro Lane every week. They deserve a trail that supports safe, healthy outdoor recreation, not one made worse by more pollution and less tree cover.
To be clear: all the trains are diesel, not electric or green. Idling diesel trains add dangerous exhaust fumes with soot and particulate matter to an area currently used by the public for fresh air and exercise. That means more pollution where people are trying to walk, ride, and breathe freely.
We ask that the Ortega Siding be denied or moved to a better location, so the trees are protected, the wildlife is protected, and the community does not lose irreplaceable natural features for a rail line that brings lasting harm. This project will ruin this iconic piece of paradise forever, all for shorter wait times (5-10 minutes less) on two trains daily!
Please help save the trees, wildlife and clean air on this portion of the California Coastal Trail, by signing our petition today. Share the link with as many people as you can. You can write your comments at the end of the petition. Thank you!!
Updates
Reached 100 supporters
June 24, 2026
79 Comments
The lane and the trees are historic. There are other solutions to the rail line than chopping these magnificent trees down.
Anyone who has walked or ran or biked or even driven this amazing lane knows how special and important the trees are. There has to be a less dangerous and disruptive section of the railway for this siding. Taking out the trees will rob everyone of the only sound and sight buffer we have from the freeway and train noise and eyesore. Please save this unique jewel of coastal beauty for everyone to enjoy.
Padaro Lane has hundreds of bicyclists and walkers each day who want to enjoy the shaded coastal experience. Train tracks and locomotives idling right adjacent to Padaro Lane with no trees to buffer the view or sound will greatly alter that experience.
· petition starter
I love this area. It would be a tragedy to cut all those big beautiful trees down along the lane. And the hawks, hummingbirds, and butterflies will lose their homes. Please don't do it!
To preserve our neighbourhood. Cutting down so many mature beautiful trees in a residential neighbourhood is not good long-term planning. The railroad siding could be placed in other. locations; the trees cannot.
The mature trees along this stretch of the coast are an important and irreplaceable part of its landscape and habitat. They have taken generations to reach this scale, and preserving them is an act of essential stewardship for generations to come. I support improving passenger rail in California, but it should be done without sacrificing this extraordinary canopy.
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Please help us save the trees and protect clean air on the Padaro Lane portion of the California Coastal Trail, by stopping the Ortega Siding project, which will include building two new bridges over creeks and five smaller bridges over culverts, and the removal of hundreds of trees for over a mile -- all to lay a new steel rail right next to the road.
Most of the trees at risk are large, mature trees more than 100 years old. They include native Coastal Live Oaks, Pines, Cypress, and Sycamores, along with massive non-native Eucalyptus trees. These trees are part of the character of the trail and the coastal landscape, and they provide shade, habitat, and a buffer that helps keep the area cooler and more livable.
Removing so many trees will hurt the environment and the wildlife. There are two creeks and an abundance of wildlife that will be displaced or negatively affected by this project, including: Hawks & Raptors, Western Pond Turtles, Great Horned Owls, Ducks, Foxes, Bobcats, Hummingbirds, and Monarch Butterflies. (Yes, this is a known Monarch Butterfly sanctuary!)
There is a new program to help aid the migration of the Steelhead Trout from the ocean up Toro Canyon Creek. Building a new massive concrete bridge over this creek will hurt that migration.
This siding project will also damage the air quality for everyone who uses this route. Hundreds of cyclists, hikers, walkers, joggers, and beach goers pass through Padaro Lane every week. They deserve a trail that supports safe, healthy outdoor recreation, not one made worse by more pollution and less tree cover.
To be clear: all the trains are diesel, not electric or green. Idling diesel trains add dangerous exhaust fumes with soot and particulate matter to an area currently used by the public for fresh air and exercise. That means more pollution where people are trying to walk, ride, and breathe freely.
We ask that the Ortega Siding be denied or moved to a better location, so the trees are protected, the wildlife is protected, and the community does not lose irreplaceable natural features for a rail line that brings lasting harm. This project will ruin this iconic piece of paradise forever, all for shorter wait times (5-10 minutes less) on two trains daily!
Please help save the trees, wildlife and clean air on this portion of the California Coastal Trail, by signing our petition today. Share the link with as many people as you can. You can write your comments at the end of the petition. Thank you!!
Updates
Reached 100 supporters
June 24, 2026
79 Comments
The destruction of the natural habitat and environment along Padaro Lane that resulting from the construction and operation a railroad siding next to the road demonstrates the lack of concern the rail companies have for the natural habitat.
The lane and the trees are historic. There are other solutions to the rail line than chopping these magnificent trees down.
Anyone who has walked or ran or biked or even driven this amazing lane knows how special and important the trees are. There has to be a less dangerous and disruptive section of the railway for this siding. Taking out the trees will rob everyone of the only sound and sight buffer we have from the freeway and train noise and eyesore. Please save this unique jewel of coastal beauty for everyone to enjoy.
Padaro Lane has hundreds of bicyclists and walkers each day who want to enjoy the shaded coastal experience. Train tracks and locomotives idling right adjacent to Padaro Lane with no trees to buffer the view or sound will greatly alter that experience.
· petition starter
I love this area. It would be a tragedy to cut all those big beautiful trees down along the lane. And the hawks, hummingbirds, and butterflies will lose their homes. Please don't do it!
To preserve our neighbourhood. Cutting down so many mature beautiful trees in a residential neighbourhood is not good long-term planning. The railroad siding could be placed in other. locations; the trees cannot.
The mature trees along this stretch of the coast are an important and irreplaceable part of its landscape and habitat. They have taken generations to reach this scale, and preserving them is an act of essential stewardship for generations to come. I support improving passenger rail in California, but it should be done without sacrificing this extraordinary canopy.
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The destruction of the natural habitat and environment along Padaro Lane that resulting from the construction and operation a railroad siding next to the road demonstrates the lack of concern the rail companies have for the natural habitat.