Caltrain
HSRA and high speed rail advocates fail to be realistic in their quest to ride the rails on the backs of other taxpayers. I’ve made our points on the flaws of CA HSR enough times that there is no need to repeat the same message.
Caltrain
Here we have an established passenger rail system, serving the SF Peninsula for over 150 years, struggling to find funds to maintain their operations. Having a former corporate HQ in Santa Clara I am familiar with Caltrain and its train service from Gilroy and San Jose to Palo Alto and SF. The Mercury News just published the following current bad news.
Plan to save Caltrain to be set forth Thursday
By Janis Mara
“Caltrain confirmed Tuesday that its board of directors will vote on a plan to keep all 86 of its trains rolling and all of its stations open for at least another year.
The board is scheduled to consider the plan at a meeting Thursday in San Carlos. The details of how the agency will fill a remaining $3.5 million budget gap are still being worked out, according to a staff report made public Tuesday.
“Funds to fill the $3.5 million shortfall have been tentatively identified but are subject to positive ongoing discussions between the (Caltrain) partner agencies and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission,” the report notes.
Board members provided hints Monday as to the source of the additional money for the 2012 fiscal year. San Francisco Supervisor Sean Elsbernd, who is chairman of the board, said the plan involves borrowing money for capital expenses, borrowing from the 2013 fiscal year and deferred maintenance. The plan also includes 25-cent fare hikes and $1-per-day parking increases.
A spokesman for the MTC declined to say how much money the commission will provide to close the budget shortfall. “We are in conversation with (the Caltrain board) about putting additional money on the table,” the spokesman, Randy Rentschler, said.
“We’re in it for two years, not for one,” Rentschler added, referring to the fact that board member and San Mateo County Supervisor Adrienne Tissier, who is leading the effort to find the money, has said she wants to keep the system as it is for two years while seeking support for a new funding source, possibly a tax.”
Source. http://www.mercurynews.com/san-mateo-county/ci_17885908?nclick_check=1
*It must be a hoot for our OC bloggers to view the apparent “family feud” of the Winship’s vs. Gilbert on High Speed Rail.
The truth of the matter is that even intelligent people can disagree on certain things. Our argument from the beginning has had nothing to do with government spending, borrowing or government debt. Heck, the City of LA still can’t fix all there own potholes. We would be very afraid to look right here in the OC regarding potholes as well…….brutal if you just take the time to look up from your texting or cell phone while you are driving.
High Speed Rail…..we argue is much akin to the Space Program ……only a transporation system that actually can move more folks than the Space Shuttle but at a affordable price.
Gabby Gifford will be watching her husband launch the last of the Space Shuttle missions this week. How much will that single mission cost the tax payers of these United States? How many people will be transported how many miles? What will be the cost per mile again? Probably more than the .55 cents a mile we get for business transportation costs on our tax forms…ya think?
High Speed Rail….the new Iron Horse……is a worthy endeavor which actually leaves our society better off than it would be without it. Just ask around the more innovative and progressive societies in the world. China, Japan, Korea, France, Germany, Euroland in
General. We are not talking the Orient Express here….we are talking about connecting
key areas of this country and state….and delivering people back and forth at a reasonable
cost.
How much would this project have cost the people in 1970? 1980? 1990? 2000? 2010? 2020? 2040? 2080 perhaps? The cost is not going to go down. The worthy project concept
is not going to go away. Could we have afforded this project in 1990? Easily! Then why was
it not done? Bankers, Fannie Mae, Barney Frank, Republicans, Democrats, Employee Unions, Amtrak, the Airlines, Special Interests, a voice in a dark fog perhaps?
All in all, we support High Speed Rail….no matter the cost….whenever we get there. It would just be nice for once…..to see some folks with vision rather than their own special interest group in mind when they look to the future!
Ron and Anna.
The space program, while costly, yielded scientific results such as the programmable Pacemaker that extended my mom’s life for perhaps 20 years.
What new products will result from spending billions of dollars that our next generation will be forced to pay for while their basic government services are curtailed?
Hey Ron & Anna.
Mark this date on your calendar. I support an LA Times editorial.
“California will not get the $19 billion in federal grant support the authority was counting on receiving by 2016, nor (almost certainly) the $2.4 billion in grants that Florida’s governor declined. Technically, Congress’ agreement did not rescind roughly $3.75 billion in federal grants to California, but this commitment is also at risk. About $715 million has not been obligated and could be easily rescinded. The remainder of these funds is obligated, and rescinding them would be more difficult but not impossible.
California taxpayers would benefit greatly from rescission, because every dollar Congress finds the courage to rescind from the California rail project is a dollar the state no longer has to match.”
Borrow from the future to pay expenses now, increase fees, increase taxes … all to keep a failing system afloat for a couple more years. Sound familiar? [Insert failed Democrat program here]. More proof that HSR is nothing but a joke and a drain on taxpayer dollars.
*Newbie,
One thing for sure……you will probably be the first one to use it…..after it is built. Larry pard,
Pacemaker, Teflon pans, thousands of bonding and adhesives, hundreds of thousands of
sub-contractor products, hardware, electronics and other items for the future. Space, the
final frontier……hmmm. We think not, plenty of knock-off products, technology, software and products for the future with High Speed Rail – as well. The Consumer Electronic Products Show in Las Vegas is just busting with great ideas for High Speed Rail……but then you would have to look…..before you talk about doing away with future technology because it is expensive. So, were computers in 1980. I paid $4600 for an Compaq 8088 machine…used.
Yes sire, those were the days…….DOS – the final frontier!
Ron n Anna.
We exhibited products at consumer electronic shows in Vegas.
I doubt that they are displaying any new products for use with HSR.
Why did the HSRA leaders fly to Europe to see their HSR system? As we all agree, HSR passenger service already exists.
What you and the HSRA cannot find is M O N E Y to pay 4 it.
While I no longer subscribe to the LA Times today’s Op-Ed deserves a gold star.
“High -speed rail hopes are off the tracks.
Federal funds are drying up for California’s project, and that’s a good thing”
The Times Op-Ed goes on to report that congress “rescinds $400 million in funding for the high-speed rail in fiscal year 2010, and eliminates federal funding for high-speed rail in fiscal year 2011.
The congressional actions means that California will not get the $19 billion in federal grant support the authority was counting on receiving by 2016, nor (almost certainly) the $2.4 billion in grants that Florida’s governor declined.”
Thank you Congress reps from CA for this bold act !!!!!!!!!!!!
Just more proof that Democrats don’t care about the out of control spending by our federal government. Smart states turn down $2 billion in HSR funding. Do we use that to pay down the deficit? Heck no, let’s give it to blue states who were never supposed to get it in the first place. What a joke the left is when it comes to the budget.
http://www.breitbart.tv/2b-high-speed-rail-funding-rejected-by-florida-given-to-blue-states/
Newbie.
While CA HSRA is getting $375 million from Florida the spicket has been turned off for new federal funding.
So if you want to ride the rails I guess, if they are ever to happen at all, you will need to drive to the Central Valley area by Fresno to catch the brief ride to no where.
Show me the money.