In Del Mar, California, a railroad line offers scenic views of the Pacific but faces severe erosion issues that threaten its stability. The community agrees the tracks need relocation, yet debates over new routes have slowed progress amid concerns about costs, environmental impact, and community disruption. Recent efforts have narrowed options to four potential solutions, including three tunnels and one plan to reinforce existing tracks. Local residents express frustration over bureaucratic delays and the looming threat of climate change on coastal infrastructure. As the situation worsens with rising sea levels, finding a viable long-term solution becomes increasingly urgent.
Situated on rugged bluffs in a coastal city to the north of San Diego, a railway line provides travelers with an expansive view of the Pacific Ocean. However, the foundation it rests upon is deteriorating.
While the issue is universally acknowledged, disputes regarding potential solutions expose a larger dilemma and a concerning reality for residents in California: adapting to climate change that jeopardizes coastal living and the lifestyle that has long shaped the state’s identity, encompassing both its economy and culture.
The railway segment on the bluffs in Del Mar, California, links San Diego with the rest of the state and beyond, being part of one of the busiest intercity passenger rail networks in the country. Yet, the bluffs are rapidly eroding, with sections of the track now perilously close to the cliff edge.
Local officials and residents in Del Mar and surrounding areas widely agree that relocating the tracks is necessary, though they disagree about where they should be relocated. This contention has hindered progress, even as climate change heightens the dangers posed to the bluffs and the rail line.
On Friday, local representatives on the board of the San Diego Association of Governments, the county’s regional planning agency, voted to limit the possible alternatives to four options, down from more than a dozen assessed in a recent report. However, a final decision is still far off.
“It’s at a critical point, and with all the bureaucracy, we wonder if it will even be resolved in our lifetime,” said Barbara Myers, a former member of the Del Mar school board. She resides near the proposed site of a tunnel entrance for the rail line relocation and is concerned about toxic fumes and the risk of road collapses.
As sea levels rise and more powerful waves crash onto their shores, numerous communities like Del Mar recognize the urgent need to adapt but are struggling to find viable options.
Cliffside residences and apartment complexes precariously hang on the edge, with some abandoned or demolished prematurely due to the danger of collapse from erosion. Throughout California’s coastline, infrastructure has suffered: parts of scenic Highway 1 have been closed repeatedly due to landslides, and the Santa Cruz Wharf, a favored tourist spot, was devastated by towering waves last December. Communities are hurrying to safeguard diminishing beaches, fortifying them with barriers and dredging sand from other locations in an effort to sustain and restore them.
“The situation in Del Mar represents a smaller part of a larger struggle that’s unfolding,” remarked Charles Lester, a former official with the California Coastal Commission, which oversees development along the coastline. He now leads the Ocean and Coastal Policy Center at the University of California, Santa Barbara. “What will we prioritize and attempt to preserve as these environmental changes occur?”
The Del Mar rail line is part of a 351-mile coastal corridor stretching from San Luis Obispo to San Diego, utilized by passenger, freight, and military trains, including Amtrak’s Pacific Surfliner, whose name captures the coastal hugging nature of sections of the route. Millions of rides are made along this route each year.
However, the same coastal proximity that provides passengers with stunning ocean vistas also exposes the track to erosion risks. Construction teams are actively working on the fifth project since the early 2000s aimed at stabilizing the Del Mar bluffs, a $90 million endeavor that will introduce additional support columns and retaining walls.
These efforts are not viewed as a permanent solution. The encroaching ocean and persistent erosion continue to batter the bluffs, resulting in costly emergency repairs and frequent service disruptions. The bluffs typically recede by several inches annually, although sudden collapses can erase more than 20 feet in one go. And the issue isn’t confined to Del Mar; erosion is also destabilizing portions of the rail corridor further north, in San Clemente.
“Realistically, we don’t have much time, given the rapid pace of climate change,” stated Fred Jung, chair of the rail corridor’s board of directors. “We must act immediately.
Del Mar city officials—a community of about 4,000 residents occupying less than two square miles—have contemplated relocating the tracks off the deteriorating bluffs for decades. In 2017, the county planning agency finalized a study suggesting five possible new routes.
The movement gained traction in 2022 when Governor Gavin Newsom approved a state budget that allocated $300 million for track relocation. By June 2024, the local government association announced the options had been reduced to three, all involving inland tunnels.
The reaction was immediate. Del Mar residents raised issues regarding tunnel construction and operations beneath their homes, highlighting risks associated with vibration and pollution. Those residing near the proposed tunnel entrance and exit points expressed fears of home demolitions.
A proposed route traversing a lagoon faced opposition from environmentalists due to potential impacts on sensitive habitats. Meanwhile, a tunnel proposal beneath the San Diego County Fairgrounds and into adjacent Solana Beach was met with resistance from both that city and fair organizers.
Financial considerations also loom large over the discussion. The project is projected to cost billions, and voters in the county rejected a proposed half-cent sales tax increase in November that would have funded regional transportation and infrastructure projects, including the Del Mar track relocation.
In light of these challenges, the agency reassessed the situation, leading to Friday’s vote. Three of the options currently being considered would relocate the line off the bluffs; a fourth retains the track in its current location, fortifies the bluffs, and introduces a second track beside the existing one.
Additionally, as mandated by state and federal law, the agency will evaluate a fifth option: no project whatsoever.
During the two-hour meeting, emotions ran high as officials and residents expressed their concerns about the proposed options. Del Mar Mayor Terry Gaasterland abstained from voting.
In an interview before the meeting, the mayor remarked that none of the remaining options is likely to please everyone.
“We need to step back and minimize overall dissatisfaction,” she commented. “And also distribute it more evenly.”
This debate was vividly demonstrated on a recent Saturday in Del Mar, as construction workers were busy stabilizing a section of the bluffs supporting the tracks. At the summit, workers operated excavators, a large drill, and other heavy machinery. In numerous locations, sections of the bluffs had eroded and collapsed, sending dirt, rocks, and vegetation tumbling onto the beach below.
Officials concede that neither the ongoing stabilization efforts nor emergency repairs present a long-term answer to the issues posed by rising seas and coastal erosion.
Jim Hindman, a 64-year-old financial consultant, resides with his family just one house away from the tracks atop the bluff. At times, his voice was nearly drowned out by construction trucks stirring up dust as they maneuvered in and out of his street, which terminates at the tracks.
Mr. Hindman voiced that the proposal to add a second track to the current rail line would alter the nature of his neighborhood and the bluff. He described the bluffs as a cherished community space where locals gather to enjoy sunsets, observe whales and dolphins, and even celebrate weddings.
“Tranquility by the sea? Not in the next couple of years,” he lamented, alluding to the stabilization efforts and the potential for subsequent tunneling projects.
Richard Sfeir, aged 66, has lived in Del Mar Heights for three decades, a San Diego neighborhood adjacent to the city of Del Mar. Many residences in the Heights are perched high above downtown Del Mar along narrow, winding roads. One proposal to relocate the tracks involves tunneling beneath this neighborhood, an idea he deems “crazy” due to its cost, timeline, and potential impacts on a protected environmental zone.
Nevertheless, Mr. Sfeir, a businessman, stressed that action is necessary.
“Inaction is not a solution,” he stated, “unless it means eliminating the train entirely.”