Union Pacific Railroad has closed on the sale of its Hollister-to-Gilroy track to Palo Alto-based San Benito Railroad LLC, according to public records.

The so-called Hollister Branch Line runs about 12.5 miles mostly through San Benito County. No price was recorded on the deed.

The track had been considered a linchpin in a plan to develop thousands of homes northwest of Hollister. That’s because the line could provide passenger rail service from a proposed community there to Gilroy, where passengers…