Rail work on the Union Pacific tracks through Templeton has blocked an access road isolating several dozen people on a tract of land between the railroad tracks and Salinas River.
There is one other access road, but a resident has blocked it with rocks and logs, so the people who live in homes and trailers east of Brewer Street are isolated in their homes. They can walk out, but most did not move their cars on the Templeton side of the tracks, so their cars are trapped behind the railroad work.
Resident Randy Miller said, “Our homes are inaccessible for 3-5 days. I didn’t know it was going to happen until Tuesday morning. They posted some small placard signs done by the crossing that say they were going to do it, that they modified to make use for this event. I had a medical issue Tuesday night, and I had to ask my neighbors for help to get me out. They said they’ll be gone Thursday night.”
Robin Whitford cares for two older veterans who live in a mobile home in the neighborhood. “There’s about 15 residents and all their kids who live there, and and they’re not able to get their kids to school. They weren’t notified to move their cars across the tracks, so they’re stuck in their homes. It’s ridiculous.”
Union Pacific says the work will be completed as soon as possible.
