“Spend first, answer questions later.” So concludes a critical editorial in the January 12 edition of the Washington Post, commenting on California’s proposed $43 billion High-Speed Rail program. The Post editorial, along with a January 11 article in the New York Times (both of which we reprint below), are emblematic of the increasingly skeptical press and public opinion concerning the fiscal and economic soundness of the Obama Administration’s high-speed rail initiative.
View this complete post...Posts Tagged ‘HSR’
Skepticism About High-Speed Rail Is Growing
Thursday, January 13th, 2011High-Speed Rail in America
Tuesday, January 11th, 2011
AMERICA 2050
…There is a steep learning curve for states and regions in developing high-speed and even “classic” intercity passenger corridors. This report aims to educate the public and decision makers about the elements of success for high-speed rail as measured by factors that contribute to ridership demand for these services, particularly as they apply to the unique spatial attributes and travel patterns of America.
The Uncertain Future of the High-Speed Rail Program
Tuesday, January 4th, 2011The Illinois Department of Transportation has reached a cooperative agreement with Union Pacific and Amtrak that will permit the release of a $1.1 billion federal high-speed rail grant to the state of Illinois to fund passenger rail improvements between Chicago and St. Louis. The agreement was proclaimed by state and federal officials as “historic” and hailed as “one giant step closer to achieving high-speed passenger service between Chicago and St. Louis.” But stripped of its rhetoric, the announcement only reveals how inadequate and cost-ineffective the Administration’s “high–speed” program is turning out to be.
View this complete post...A Brief Timeline of HSR Funding
Thursday, December 30th, 2010
April, 2009: The Obama Administration’s vision for high-speed rail (VIDEO) April, 2009: Department of Transportation’s strategic plan for high-speed rail Jan, 2010: ARRA grants $8 Billion for HSR development October, 2010: Department of Transportation announces additional $2.4 for HSR November, 2010: State governments in Ohio & Wisconsin refuse HSR funds December, 2010: Department of Transportation […]
View this complete post...HSR & Social Media
Thursday, December 16th, 2010Social media chatter about transportation is high on speed rail. What’s the story?
-TransportSMS on YouTube
The Train to Nowhere: Three More Critical Perspectives
Monday, December 13th, 2010Lest you think Washington has begun a new era of fiscal self-restraint, consider this week’s act of political retribution by Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. Newly elected GOP Governors in Ohio and Wisconsin wanted to kill high-speed rail projects in their states and instead use the money to fix their battered roads. Sorry, guys. Mr. LaHood reclaimed the $1.2 billion and handed it to 13 other states that still want to build these high-speed trains to nowhere.
View this complete post...The Unraveling of the High-Speed Rail Program: A News Analysis
Wednesday, December 1st, 2010The future Republican House leadership is determined to retrieve whatever remains of the unspent and uncommitted stimulus (ARRA) funds. So has stated Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-CA), the prospective House Appropriations Committee chairman, as he introduced a bill (H.R. 6403, the “American Recovery and Reinvestment Rescission Act”) to rescind any unobligated ARRA funds and return them to the U.S. Treasury. Even already obligated ARRA funds may be at risk. Congressional GOP aides are reported to be closely reviewing agency records to identify particular stimulus-funded projects that could still be “reasonably” halted because work on them is only beginning.
View this complete post...Poll: Milwaukee – to – Madison High-Speed Rail Project
Thursday, November 25th, 2010WISCONSIN POLICY RESEARCH INSTITUTE
A majority of Wisconsinites polled between Nov. 15 and Nov. 17 oppose the Milwaukee-to-Madison rail project, and opposition grows slightly as respondents learn more about it, according to a poll sponsored by the Wisconsin Policy Research Institute. Thirty-six percent sided with the argument stating that “supporters of the passenger rail project say that it is an important addition to the transportation system in Wisconsin and is being paid for by 800 million dollars in federal money.
A rail reality check that President Obama should heed
Wednesday, November 17th, 2010Innovation NewsBriefs Vol. 21, No. 28 PRESIDENT OBAMA wants Americans to zip around in high-speed trains, just as many Japanese, French, and Chinese already do. For him, the goal seems almost as much about national pride as job creation or energy savings. “There’s no reason that Europe or China should have the fastest trains,” he has said. […]
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