FLgov.com: Feb 16th 2011; Tallahassee, Fla. – After thoughtful consideration, Governor Rick Scott informed U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood of the state’s decision to reject President Obama’s Tampa to Orlando high-speed rail project. [...]
- First – capital cost overruns from the project could put Florida taxpayers on the hook for an additional $3 billion.
- Second – ridership and revenue projections are historically overly-optimistic and would likely result in ongoing subsidies that state taxpayers would have to incur. (from $300 million – $575 million over 10 years) – Note: The state subsidizes Tri-Rail $34.6 million a year while passenger revenues covers only $10.4 million of the $64 million annual operating budget.
- Finally – if the project becomes too costly for taxpayers and is shut down, the state would have to return the $2.4 billion in federal funds to D.C.
Good for Governor Scott. It is bad enough Obama is recking tanking the nation's finances, but with the high speed rail scheme, he is importing the fiscal irresponsibility. Just like the stimulus spending, the high speed rail scheme forces states to spend money they simply do not have. Hopefully, more governors will start rejecting the Fed's irresponsibility.
Via: Memeorandum
Via: FLGov.com
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7 comments:
My Governor Kasich has said no thanks as well. So have several others. Obama says OK then; someone else will take the money. This is arrogant and the failed Democrat states and cities will be left holding the bag for the ongoing subsidies for years to come.
High speed rail my ass. Why not just cut the left lane out on highway 95 as a 100MPH lane and let people with an EZ pass pay 10 bucks for a 3 hour access, and get express lane to DC or Boston? You make money for local municipals, and you don't need to waste billions of dollars so Biden can brag to his cousins... oh, wait, that's the whole damn idea.
2nd Anony
Scott is disturbingly corrupt. This proves he is completely bought and paid for by Big Oil.
libhom, he may or may not be, but please offer proof and not blowhard crap. In the meantime, he just saved the taxpayers in Fl. money.
Actually NO he DIDNT save us a damn penny. We have been voting for this highspeed rail for YEARS now. This highspeed rail would save an adverage of $100 per trip from Pineallas County to Orlando. It would save over 3 hours of driving, significantly cut the amount of pollution produce from the rush hour traffic, much less headache, and more importantly increased tourism.
If someone is visiting Pineallas County, it would take 3 hours to go to Orlando where there is like 7 theme parks, they could have taken the high speed rail in 1 hour and literally go to all 7 backs in a day without trouble.
This moron Rick Scott is owned by Big Oil and his is corrupt as hell, he wants us Floridians to keep shelling out hundreds of dollars at the pump to drive to Orlando and back. Nobody else here has the right to speak about this issue except us Floridians. The traffic to Orlando SUCKS and backs up all the highways, the distance is extremely long, and we could have solved it all with a train ALREADY PAID FOR by the Federal Goverment and the State. The MONEY WAS ALREADY ALLOCATED NO ADDITIONAL EXPENSES EXISTED, THE LANDS WERE ALREADY BOUGHT TO PUT THE TRAIN AND EVERYTHING. THIS GUY IS JUST A MORON AND HE WILL BE DAMN LUCKY TO NOT GET IMPEACHED WHAT HE DID WAS UNCONSTITUTIONAL AND HE HAS NO RIGHT TO DECLINE A PROJECT VOTED ON BY THE TAXPAYERS.
I live if Ft.Lauderdale,Explain to me how the train is good for me.
And,i have lived hear for 30 years,i don't remember voting for the train.
I do remember he train was to be financed by private investors for about 6 billion dollars.
The train is a loser for taxpayers .period.
I live in Palm Coast and no one asked me about this waste of my money or gave me the opportunity to vote on it. Scott is on my said and I say it's about time.
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