SACRAMENTO, Calif. — As businesses slowly reopen, a new yet familiar activity is planned to open in the Sacramento area.
For many, railbikes are a favorite outdoor activity you once had to go a long distance to enjoy. That is going to change soon.
Railbikes have become a landmark up north in Fort Bragg, operated on its world-famous Skunk Train. ABC10’s Bartell Backroads first took you on a trip there nearly a year ago.
“They’re pedal-powered and you’re pedaling along the track going along the countryside in Sacramento,” Rob Petersen, the Sacramento RiverTrain’s general manager said of the new activity. “If you find that you need a little extra help, it has an electric motor so it gets an electric assist that will take it up to twenty miles an hour.”
The Sacramento RiverTrain, a sister company of the Skunk Train, is bringing the railbike experience locally, kicking off at a new boarding station in West Sacramento, taking you on a nearly two-hour trip that will let you explore the local area like you’ve never seen it before.
“We’re going to head north on the tracks toward Woodland,” Petersen said. “You'll be looking out over the Yolo bypass area and the wetlands. We're going to then head south past the station and we're going to go all the way to the weir, which is just this side past the Sacramento River.”
The Sacramento RiverTrain says the railbikes make an ideal activity because it will encourage social distancing, even once stay-at-home orders are lifted.
“This happens to be a great operation because you can ride the bike with someone you feel comfortable being next to or you can ride alone should you choose to do so but then the bikes also will have a very safe distance,” Petersen said.
Still, the Sacramento RiverTrain says they won’t be opening up the new activity until orders are lifted.
“Currently, operationally, we're ready to go,” Petersen said. “Just need the permission and green light and we will begin operation.”
The Sacramento RiverTrain itself is not going anywhere, with coordination, it will continue running along with the new railbikes.
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