As the Orange County Transportation Authority prepares to gather public input on the future of rail protection along San Clemente’s coastline, agency officials say no decisions have been made on how the city’s beaches will ultimately be protected, emphasizing that the current Coastal Rail Resiliency Study is a long-term planning effort — not a construction plan.
The Draft Coastal Rail Resiliency Study is evaluating potential strategies to help protect approximately seven miles of the LOSSAN Rail Corridor through Dana Point and San Clemente to the San Diego County line over the next 30 years.
According to Eric Carpenter, senior communications specialist for OCTA, the study was launched in response to increasingly frequent impacts from coastal erosion, bluff movement, high tides, storms and ocean swells that have repeatedly disrupted passenger and freight rail service and required emergency stabilization efforts…