As Ken Prendergast of All Aboard Ohio said: “It seems that repeated utterances of ‘Roads-n-Bridges’ have become a programmed response as the best way to boost jobs.”
The proposed Stimulus package used to contain a request (and this was as recently as last week) for a substantial amount of Stimulus Package money to be used to create jobs for passenger rail and transit across the Country. Now? Most of the money is being proposed for roads and bridges. Of course we need money for that, but where is the vision? Where is the ability to create jobs by improving our passenger rail/public transportation system? What part of ‘less dependence on foreign oil’ – do they not understand?
More from Prendergast: (the emphasis is mine)
The U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations Committee is proposing to spend just $10 billion of stimulus money on transit, with only $1.1 billion of that allocated for intercity passenger trains nationwide. Meanwhile, the proposal includes $30 billion for highway construction.
While you read this, China is spending $88 billion on rail projects this year. European countries are shifting their infrastructure budgets from a dominance of “Roads-n-Bridges” to being in balance with “Trains and Transit.” India will invest $30 billion on rail in 2009. Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Vietnam, Argentina, Mexico, Turkey and other nations are or will soon invest billions to build high-speed rail. Meanwhile America plans to spend more for short-lived benefits and less to invest in Trains and Transit that will transform a resource-constrained America for the coming century and beyond.
If you feel as I do, that the imbalance between Stimulus money for highways and bridges and rail and transit is unacceptable, call your Representatives now!
And while you’re at it, contact the Obama Transition Team through the website, Change.gov, where they are soliciting your opinions.
Peace Out – 3C
0 responses so far ↓
There are no comments yet...Kick things off by filling out the form below.
Leave a Comment