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Yet the number of freight trains could increase even further if, as planned, the state rail authority extends its route to Eureka, carrying freight from a proposed container port in Humboldt County and new rock quarry at Island Mountain near the Eel River. The trains also could carry garbage from Sonoma County through Novato to a disposal site in Nevada or Utah.

Freight service along the 142-mile route between Lombard and Willits is slated to begin by the end of 2008, according to the authority. Service ended in 2001 after federal rail authorities declared the line unsafe. Advocates say restored service could help save fuel and reduce truck traffic on Highway 101.

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In addition to the issue of freight traffic frequency, SMART's 2006 environmental report also declared the trains' length to be 12 cars each. In fact, according to Stogner's memo, the length of the authority's trains would range from 25 to 65 cars.

Stogner said neither his authority nor SMART knew the length or frequency of freight trains on the Willits-Lombard route at the time of the SMART report because the state had not yet hired a private company to operate the train.

Hired in September 2006, that operator, the Northwestern Pacific Railroad Co., includes Woodside Consulting Group of Palo Alto, Evergreen Natural Resources of Oroville and Berg Holdings of Novato.

According to the company's business plan, its directors expect to restore rail service between Lombard and Willits - including the replacement or repair of 53 grade crossings, 38 bridges, 50,000 railroad ties and 62 miles of track - at a cost of $42.6 million.

Extending rail service north to South Fork could cost $108 million, according to the company's plan. However, Northwestern Pacific believes the work would be worthwhile, because it would provide access to the Island Mountain quarry, in an area inaccessible by truck. The company expects annual revenues from quarry freight to equal $30 million.

The plan has been vigorously opposed by Friends of the Eel River, a Humboldt County environmental group that believes the quarry proposal could add another 10 freight trains a day to the route.

Voters in Marin and Sonoma counties narrowly defeated a half-cent sales tax to pay for SMART service in 2006. The SMART board had hoped to return the issue to the ballot in 2008. In his June 19 memo, however, Stogner said the SMART board was worried that news of the additional freight trains could delay a vote on the tax and asked rail officials to hold off on releasing information about the new freight numbers.

Despite the time and expense of a new environmental study, opponents of the SMART project say the agency needs to know how additional freight trains will affect Marin.

"From a legal point of view, SMART is obligated to do an environmental study based on the number of freight trains NCRA will ultimately be operating during the next 20 years, all the way to Port Eureka," said Mike Arnold, co-chairman of the Marin Coalition for Effective Transportation.

That's a much larger analysis than the state rail authority is prepared to conduct, Stogner said, adding that his agency would have to conduct an entirely new environmental study should the port or quarry plans become a reality.

"Our estimates are only for freight traffic at the south end of the line," Stogner said. "What happens north of Willits is too speculative at this point. It's not forseeable. If it comes to pass, we'll have to have another environmental document."

But Supervisor Arnold wants any environmental analysis of the project to be as comprehensive as possible.

"The city of Novato has asked for a supplemental EIR," Arnold said. "I think we may need something bigger than a supplement."

Both the railroad authority and SMART will share use of the tracks connecting Marin with Sonoma County. Stogner could not say whether freight trains would have to run at night to accommodate SMART's passenger trains.

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Stogner insisted that the freight project had changed little from its inception, and that concern over the number of freight trips through the county was misplaced.

"What you're hearing now is a small group who is opposed to train service, who always has been and always will be, and they've revved up their propaganda machine," Stogner said.