North Bay Climate & Clean Energy Gathering - Trains for Decarbonization

For April, we'll be partying ON THE SMART TRAIN! to a happy hour in San Rafael to support Measure B on the June 2nd ballot.

Come meet great people, see the beautiful rail corridor, hear about national trains + energy issues, and learn how you can support keeping rail alive in the North Bay by reauthorizing funding for the SMART Train!

MARIN Folks: Join us 6:00-7:30pm at Ranch Water, 711 4th Street, San Rafael ! Talks will happen 6:30-6:50p.

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SONOMA Folks: Join us on the train to San Rafael!

START: Arrive EARLY to catch the 5:21p train from Downtown Santa Rosa platform. Or catch the #39 train at your local station. TRAIN SCHEDULE - see Weekday, Southbound: https://www.sonomamarintrain.org/schedules-fares#southpm

Or catch the #41 train at 5:53p from Downtown Santa Rosa. You'll miss the talks, but catch the happy hour!

ARRIVE: At San Rafael platform. Walk 1 block to Ranch Water to hear our speakers from 6:30-6:50pm. (Join us , Marin folks!)

RETURN: Catch a Northbound train at 6:55pm, 7:27pm, or 7:59p. ​We'll make announcements to be sure you get out the door on time.  https://www.sonomamarintrain.org/schedules-fares#northpm

Food & Drinks: Bring Your Own on the train. Drinks are available at Ranch Water, outside food welcome! Pick up pizza slices and more next door at Extreme Pizza.

At Ranch Water in San Rafael from 6:30-6:50p we will hear from:

Denny Rosatti, Campaign Consultant for the SMART Initiative campaign, and Principal of Rosatti Consulting, will share the importance of passing Measure B in the June 2nd election, and how Sonoma and Marin residents can get involved in ensuring the passage of the measure. https://thesmartinitiative.org/get-involved/Christopher D. Smith, founder and CEO of SunTrain, will discuss how freight trains carrying utility-scale batteries can be used to leapfrog modern transmission deployment delays. With Trainsmission(TM), coal era rail logistics can move batteries storing 2 GWh of electricity on railcars that are hauled over existing freight railroads. Utility-scale power can be delivered daily, discharging directly into grid substations, wholesale power markets, or behind the meter to energy intensive industrial loads.Jessica Yarnall Loarie, VP of western regulatory affairs for a clean energy developer, previously at Sierra Club, prosecuted coal companies for the environmental and health impacts of coal dust falling from railcars that affected communities and waterways along rail lines across America. On the way down and at happy hour, we'll do a collective debrief of updates from SF Climate Week, happening April 19-25 - find your events to attend now!: https://www.sfclimateweek.org/

Measure B, or The SMART Initiative, is a citizen-led measure on the June 2, 2026 ballot to renew and protect funding for the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) system. The existing 0.25% sales tax currently funds 1/2 of SMART's infrastructure and operations, but expires in 2028. Passage of the ballot measure will ensure that SMART continues to connect communities, offers a reliable alternative to Highway 101 congestion, cuts greenhouse gas emissions, and expands service across the North Bay for the next 30 years.

Why do we need this initiative now?

Without renewed funding, SMART won’t be able to continue operations at today’s levels, let alone expand service hours and geography. This initiative protects the investment voters have already made in our region’s transportation system and ensures SMART can grow into a true regional connector. SMART provided transport for 1.12 Million trips in FY 2025, and nearly as many people used the bike & pedestrian path, driving down North Bay greenhouse gas emissions, and allowing for better multi-modal transportation options as we continue to grow.

Read more here: https://www.pressdemocrat.com/2026/02/22/close-to-home-smart-is-a-transit-asset-for-the-north-bay/