Lies, Water and Commuter Rail
Here is the story from the Chattanooga press:
High Speed RailEven how people cross the Tennessee-Georgia line could change because of legislative action in Atlanta.
A resolution supporting construction of a magnetically levitated rail line between the Atlanta and Chattanooga airports is one recommendation by a joint study committee on transportation.
Georgia Sen. Jeff Mullis, R-Chickamauga, who was co-chairman of the committee, said the “mag-lev” rail proposal probably would be the recommendation that would have the most impact on North Georgia.
Approval for the concept by Georgia’s General Assembly could give it the steam Chattanooga leaders have been trying to stoke and Atlanta business has been damping down for years, Sen. Mullis said.
Mr. Littlefield agreed. “Georgia needs to see that as an advantage to them,” he said. “It offers them significant growth benefits to North Georgia.”
The project, under study at the federal level, carries a price tag of about $3 billion, Sen. Mullis said. The rail line would cost less than a new interstate, he said.
Sen. Mullis and Mr. Littlefield have stressed the high-speed rail proposal has nothing to do with water worries.
“We’re not talking about a rail-for-water swap,” Mr. Littlefield said.
It always seems that when a political agenda is sought, money is on the table - our money in the form of tax dollars. Whether it is a local passive park or business interests tweaking legislators, somebody wants to dip into the public treasury.
Regarding Mag-Lev, The stated cost is absolutely false! Mag-Lev would cost about $110 million a mile and it is about 100 miles plus you have the stations. A real approximate cost is $12 Billion. Again politicians are pitching a lower cost and ignoring the realities.
The real question is, "Why would Georgians want to fund Mag-Lev to Chattanooga?" If Georgia taxpayers even want a high speed rail and they want to link a regional airport, why not keep the project in the State? Wouldn't Macon or Columbus or even Augusta would be more reasonable?
Last year when the drought was hitting hard, we hard proposals for Goergia to buy water from Tennessee. Just as it was under Roy Barnes, Tennessee rebuked the idea. Apparently some folks are seeking a back door to sweeten the deal.
For several years commuter rail has been a topic in Metro Atlanta. It has been pitched from every angle with every false claim possible. Whether it was Eldrin Bell, Rep. Scott or Brain Train proponents, the costs of implementation and operation always come back to Georgia's taxpayers.
Just as it always is with tax money, and somebody thinking it provides unlimited resources for any half-baked agenda, nobody is looking at the facts!
Comments
Maglev is expensive, but not as much as you're claiming. I am a little curious where you found the $110 million per mile number.
Shanghai's Maglev cost $1.3 billion for 19 miles of track. By my math that works out to about $68 million per mile. You're off by about $40 million per mile with that figure.
Driving up I75 from Atlanta to Chattanooga, which is a pretty straight shot, is about 118 miles. Multiply that times $68 million per mile and it works out to about $8 billion.
China estimates it can lower the cost of building Maglev in the coming years down to about $25 million per kilometer, which works out to about $40 million per mile.
I think the safe estimate for a proposal in Georgia is somewhere between those two numbers, around $50 million per mile. That works out to a $5.9 billion price tag, or about double what they're claiming it will cost, but also a solid $6 billion less than what you're claiming here.
Now, I acknowledge that a pretty damn compelling case would still have to be made for a $6 billion rail line. But that's what is: a $6 billion line, not a $12 billion line.
Posted by: Rusty | January 27, 2008 10:21 AM
"A billion here, a billion there, and pretty soon you're talking real money."
So true, even if it isn't really a quote.
When is there an actual return on the investment if it costs $3-6-12B ?
Posted by: Joe | January 27, 2008 01:22 PM
If maglev is really going to happen some day, it would make a lot more strategic sense for it to go to Charlotte, the banking capital of the country. Metro ATL has the No. 1 airport (stay Delta stay!), which is the huge draw for big business, and being able to hop on a quick train to hit the big banks in Charlotte makes Georgia even more attractive for corporate HQ's. Makes a lot more sense for Georgia big businesses than a train to Chattanooga. Even a train to Savannah, for tourism and the huge growing population along the coastline, makes more sense than Chattanooga. Not sure if any of y'all have driven up and down the coastline recently, but I can't believe how much housing stock is expolding everywhere there. 10 years from now, the coastline population will be bigger than any metro area of the state except metro ATL.
Chattanooga is nice for a weekend getaway trip, but that's the big draw for a train there? Is that where the next big airport is going to be? That would explain it. Talk about billions and billions.
Posted by: Trackboy1 | January 27, 2008 03:36 PM
The benefits people see in Chattanooga:
1) Basically unlimited water supply.
2) They all ready have an airport, and plenty of land surrounding it to make it bigger.
3) Sorry guys, but North Metro is more developed and stretches further than South Metro.
4) The Chattanooga City and Hamilton County governments have some nice sized land for sale for development by major industries that simply can't be found in Atlanta anymore.
Posted by: Trev |