Posted on 09/09/2011 3:05:53 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
The fortunes of California's high-speed rail project, which would connect Southern California to the Bay Area with a 220mph train, took a big financial hit Thursday afternoon, when a congressional panel slashed the Federal Railroad Administration budget.
The Obama administration had asked for $8 billion for fiscal 2012 for high-speed rail projects, including the one in California, as well as other passenger rail programs around the country.
But the House Appropriations subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development on Thursday cut the request by nearly $7 billion, leaving money only to operate Amtrak and some smaller programs.
House Republican leaders had signaled before the session that they would not support any request for additional high-speed rail outlays. They cited pressure to cut spending and argued such projects don't make economic sense.
Rep. David Price (D-N.C.) proposed an amendment to fund the high-speed rail program with $1 billion, but it was voted down. The funding bill has to be approved by the entire Appropriations Committee and the full House. The Senate has not yet taken up rail funding.
The California High Speed Rail Authority, the state organization that is building the system, can use about $6.3 billion in prior federal grants and proceeds from an initial bond offering that state taxpayers approved in 2008. But before that step is taken, Gov. Jerry Brown must give his approval to the bond issue and prioritize it for the state treasurer.
(Excerpt) Read more at latimesblogs.latimes.com ...
Moonbeam isn’t his Dad, ol’ Pat, building this white elephant in the valley first, final costs not known.. but likely to far exceed 43 billion.. sounds like a mighty risky scheme to me.. maybe if it ran on solar, it’d be a done deal for the Californiates. high-speed rail going nowhere.. just what we don’t need.
Ol’ Jer Brown’s going to go with the flow and spend the money anyway. KKKalifornia needs highspeed rail like it needs another hole in the head!
Jerry Brown is a flake and a union puppet, but I don’t think he is crazy enough to approve this crap. We will see.
OH BOY! That is worth a celebration!
Willie Green saddened.
A high speed train from SoCal to Bay is actually a good idea. Some outfit with no Govt ties ought to do it and operate it efficiently and at a profit.
Even if it did make sense, why should people from Florida to Alaska pay for it? There may be a few interstate projects where the US Department of Transportation can serve as a neutral arbiter between states having problems agreeing on things like where an interstate bridge should be placed or how the costs should be divided, but there is no reason why even those costs need to be spread past the states they runs through.
(I'll cut a little slack for defense highways through Alaska, but not bridges to nowhere for local benefits.)
Let Kookifornicata fund its own train to nowhere. Might as well be a one way exit train out.
but they WILL pay for criminal illegal law breakers who suck off our system for education and give nothing back and then lie about their status and all whom vote democRAT.
It does appear the House Appropriations Committee has saved California from dingbat leftists who were willing to put their State into financial duress.
“”A high speed train from SoCal to Bay is actually a good idea. Some outfit with no Govt ties ought to do it and operate it efficiently and at a profit.””
I assume you are kidding??
If it truly is a 'good idea' private capital funds would be bidding for the rights to do it. Just because something looks good on a map doesn't mean it's worth a crap on the ground.
I talked to the folks pushing the bullet train idea in Cal during their recent public comment period. The train would run about 1/4 mile from my home. They told me that about 2 mil people, not tickets but indviduals, would use the train. I believe the system development and operations to be about $48b. That’s about $24k per person. Why not give everyone who lives near the proposed route a new Honda Accord instead of building the train? That’s how rediculous this idea is.
Take NY’s rail money away....It’s dumb....Fromwestern NY to Eastern NY...We have a thruway from end to end and airports at critical points.
It already exists, and takes a little over an hour - it’s called the airlines. Typically less than $100 round trip - and about 1 hour each direction.
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