a wonderful day for Illinoisans as we celebrate a mile>> stone“It’sachievement towards becoming the first state in the
because I see jobs leaving Ohio, I see resources leaving Ohio, I see vital infrastructure leaving Ohio. And I see other states being enriched by resources that would otherwise have created thousands of new jobs, revitalized our cities and helped keep our young people in Ohio. I can’t understand the logic of giving up these vital, job-creating resources to California and other states at a time when so many Ohioans need jobs.”
nation to bring high-speed rail to fruition,” Governor Pat Quinn said. “We applaud the cooperation and hard work of all participating agencies to bring high-speed rail service, thousands of jobs, and economic growth to communities across the state.” “I’m proud that Illinois continues to lead the country in its pursuit of high-speed rail service. This agreement marks one more milestone in our quest to make safe, reliable, high-speed rail service a reality in just a handful of years,” said U.S. Senator Dick Durbin. “ The Cooperative Agreement also outlines current plans for 110-mph high-speed rail service upon the completion of the construction that began in September. The agreement calls for a total of five daily round trips between Chicago and St. Louis, including three daily high-speed round trips in the initial 2014 schedule — and confirms on-time performance expectations of at least 80 percent for the service. Expected reductions in travel time of as much as 48 minutes between
Rail Written off as “Romantic Notion”
PHOTO: flickr.com/photos/auvet/2763300381/
Excerpts from Wall Street Journal op/ed by Wendell Cox, principal of Demographia, a consulting firm based in St. Louis. He served on the Amtrak Reform Council from 1999-2002 and is co-author with Joseph Vranich of the 2008 Reason Foundation study. “The California High Speed Rail Proposal: A Due Diligence Report.”
▲ The train depot in Lincoln, Illinois, will eventually see 18 passenger trains per day.
Chicago and St. Louis are also noted in the agreement, shortening the trip between the two cities to as little as 4 hours, 32 minutes. Amtrak operates passenger rail service along the route in cooperation with Union Pacific, which owns the track. In January 2010, the Obama administration awarded Illinois more than $1.2 billion in federal stimulus funds for highspeed passenger rail projects, including corridor improvements on Illinois’ signature route: Chicago to St. Louis.
Ohio’s Outgoing Governor Reacts to Rejection of Funds Outgoing Democrat Gov. Ted Strickland said: “Today is one of the saddest days during my four years as governor
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Sustainable Communities • MARCH/APRIL 2011
On Thursday the Obama administration awarded $8 billion in stimulus funds to plan and build high-speed rail projects in California and Florida, and for other routine passenger-rail projects masquerading as high-speed rail. This is a political plum to the states that will receive the money. It is also a dream come true for fans of bullet trains in Japan and Europe and the faster, greenhouse gas-belching Mag-Lev (magnetic levitation) lines. But this is not money well spent. Supporters say high-speed rail is a cost-effective, “green” solution to airport and highway congestion. In reality, it is costly to build and operate and has a negligible impact on highway and airport traffic. High-speed rail is driven by little more than a romantic notion to confer a European ambiance on American cities. Proponents also claim that high-speed rail is profitable, but this too is off the mark. Internationally, only two segments have ever broken even: Tokyo to Osaka and Paris to Lyon. Ridership in these markets has been bolstered by high gasoline prices and one-way highway tolls of $40 and $100, respectively. These and other foreign routes have attracted much of their ridership from a strong core of rail passengers that does not exist in the U.S. ❧
For more information: Midwest High Speed Rail: www.connectthemidwest.com US High Speed Rail Association: www.ushsr.com Reason Foundation, lobbies against high-speed rail: http://reason.org