02 December 2010

The High-Speed Rail and Transit Debacle

Since President Obama has been in office, there has been a massive push from many parties to establish the groundwork for a high-speed rail system here in the United States. With the admirable leadership of Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, the funding has become available and already dispersed to construct several rail corridors as pilots for the rest of the country, one being in my homestate of Florida between Tampa and Orlando. Though this line and the others are far from perfect and only a baby step in establishing a nationwide system (which honestly, seems more and more like a farfetched dream), it is SOMETHING!

However, over the past few weeks leading up to the midterm elections and the weeks since, there has been a sudden backlash against these high-speed rail projects as well as other public transit projects within cities. This anti-transit sentiment seems to be due solely to the fact that tax dollars are required to fund these projects.

Well, DUHH!

Do these governors who actually want to give back federal dollars because they think this is a waste of taxpayer dollars really believe that things will just happen? Even with a market like this? Some solutions are to just not spend the money (even though thousands of jobs would be created...) or to put it toward something like highways. Really?

Transit is not meant to make money. It is meant to be equitable. It's purpose is to help people go from point A to point B quickly, efficiently, and sustainably. Is this something that private, deep pocketed investors can provide? Maybe. But the role of government, at least in the United States, according to the Preamble of our Constitution is to "form a more perfect Union,...insure domestic Tranquility,...promote the general Welfare..." I am pretty confident that providing decent public transit is an obligation of our government.

Now, this does not mean that we are off the hook, of course. Do we realize how much we drive and take the plane? Do we realize how dependent we have become on these things? Do we understand the impact it is having on our future? Do we know that there are alternatives, like effective transit and inter-city rail out there? Do we let our government know that we want those alternatives? Are we willing to pay a bit more in taxes? Why not?

I think our politicians and those who are afraid of taxes need to grow a pair and deal with it. Establish the proposed gas sales tax. Levy an income tax in places that don't have one (ahem...Florida...). There, I said it! Call me a socialist, but I will just refer to you as a greedy, non-communal, and blind to the fact that we're actually not the best country in the world like you continue to believe. (I probably won't do that, because I'm nice)

But really, America. I continue to be ashamed that this is even an issue.

4 comments:

  1. Can I just say that I agree with you 100% What this country needs most is to develop new and maintain and improve old infrastructure. Not only will it create jobs for Americans, but it would strengthen us as a nation. And thank you for saying it, I absolutely hate it when people say that America is the best nation in the world simply because it's America. You need to earn the right to say that, and right now, I don't think America deserves to consider itself the best. How can you be the best when there are children starving, when there are people denied equal opportunities because of race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation or national origin?

    I don't want to get into a sermon here, but let me just say that I will be frequenting this lovely blog.

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  2. Taylor? Taylor Mac? Awesome. Glad you agree!

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  3. I appreciate your thoughts on the high-speed rail issue. I sometimes just don't know what to think - on one side, I hate that the money can't go to paying off debt, but on the other side and the way I feel more, we cannot abandon infrastructure and transit improvements. And you are totally right - it will create TONS of jobs, especially for those of us in the engineering field as the projects take shape.

    Investors can't and won't make high-speed rail happen. Because its effect won't ever be felt in the lifetime of that investor - it just doesn't pay off that quickly. I like to compare it to the Interstate Highway System, which I'm sure at the time seemed a lot bigger waste than it looks now and lucky for the government, they had the "excuse" of military transport to make it happen. And to this day, we still pour billions of dollars in that road system, from gas tax etc.

    I think high-speed rail has proven to be a success other places in the world. And Americans overseas like it for the most part (mainly because many don't have a car). But for it to truly happen here, it will take the kind of risk-investment like the government put into the Interstate system - which helped make the automobile the "necessity" it is today. It'll take gas tax, it'll take referendum votes in states, government management of rail services (certainly for starters), and most importantly, it'll take a shift away from the automobile to walking, biking, busing and riding the train in the American psyche - and I think that is the biggest hurdle of all that may never be cleared.

    But if "jobs" and "economic stimulus" are such a big deal in this country, seems like this would do the trick...

    It's a really tough call to make because for all the cost-benefit analysis, ultimately we just don't know. In conclusion, I would like to see our government just decide to either completely drop the idea and continue on in other directions OR pursue it wholeheartedly with money and resources. What won't work is what's going on now, and that's throwing money at this and that HSR project and hoping some state government and companies can work a miracle.

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