Editorial: SMART must keep pushing to fulfill path promises

One of the reasons why the proposed 30-year extension of the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit tax fell far short of passing in 2020 was the agency’s slow pace at fulfilling its promise to build a parallel bike/pedestrian path.

It was their goal of creating a “North-South Greenway” that led Marin bicyclists to support the 2008 passage of the bi-county tax that launched the Marin-Sonoma rail service.

Understandably, SMART’s primary focus was getting the long-planned Larkspur-to-Santa Rosa rail service started, but the bike community, which had worked hard for Measure Q, was less enthusiastic about the extension. The progress in making the promised pathway a reality was lagging far behind.

Since the 2020 defeat, SMART’s leadership has worked to remedy that political gap, devoting more money to closing gaps in the path.

The latest is a 1-mile path from the Marin County Civic Center to Smith Ranch Road near McInnis Park. The cost was $4.8 million.

It is a welcomed alternative to bicyclists and pedestrians having to make the trek via the Redwood Highway frontage road and crossing the busy Manuel T. Freitas Parkway interchange.

As Warren Wells, policy and advocacy director of the Marin County Bicycle Coalition, put it, the new path is “safer, faster and more pleasant.”

Next on the list is a connector following the rail tracks under Highway 101, connecting Merrydale Road and Civic Center Drive.

It is methodical progress toward fulfilling that 2008 promise of a multi-modal system that could provide a safe, viable and “greener” alternative to Highway 101’s gridlock.

The bi-county quarter-cent sales tax that launched SMART is due to expire in 2029.

SMART’s progress on the pathway and building ridership have been substantive advances over where the agency was four years ago when it asked voters to extend the tax and voter support fell far short of the two-thirds majority required for passage.

On the path, SMART still has many gaps it needs to close, but it is committed to making diligent progress. Fulfilling promises and rebuilding a strong coalition is going to be vital when SMART returns again to voters.