USA finally getting High speed Railway, starting with California - Polidicks

[quote] SACRAMENTO, Calif.—California lawmakers gave the green light to start building the nation's first dedicated high-speed rail line, a multibillion dollar project that will eventually link Los Angeles and San Francisco. The move marked major political victories for Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown and the Obama administration. Both have promoted bullet trains as job generators and clean transportation alternatives. In a narrow 21-16 party-line vote that involved intense lobbying by the governor, legislative leaders and labor groups, the state Senate approved the measure marking the launch of California's ambitious bullet train, which has spent years in the planning stages. "The Legislature took bold action today that gets Californians back to work and puts California out in front once again," Brown said. Brown pushed for the massive infrastructure project to accommodate expected growth in the nation's most populous state, which now has 37 million people. State and federal officials also said high-speed rail would create jobs. "No economy can grow faster than its transportation network allows," U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said in a statement. "With highways between California cities congested and airspace at a premium, Californians desperately need an alternative." The bill authorizes the state to begin selling $4.5 billion in voter-approved bonds that includes $2.6 billion to build an initial 130-mile stretch of the high-speed rail line in the agriculturally rich Central Valley. That allows the state to draw another $3.2 billion in federal funding. The first segment of the line will run from Madera to Bakersfield. Senate Republicans blasted the decision, citing the state's ongoing budget problems. They said project would push California over a fiscal cliff. No GOP senators voted for the bill Friday. The final cost of the completed project from Los Angeles to San Francisco is projected to be $68 billion. "It's unfortunate that the majority would rather spend billions of dollars that we don't have for a train to nowhere than keep schools open and harmless from budget cuts," Sen. Tom Harman, R-Huntington Beach, said in a statement. Dan Richard, chairman of the California High-Speed Rail Authority, which is managing the project, said California would have lost billions of dollars in federal aid if the Senate fails to pass the bill before adjourning Friday for a monthlong recess. California entered a contract that called for the federal government to provide money for building the Central Valley segment if the state also put up its share, he said. "Not only will California be the first state in the nation to build a high-speed rail system to connect our urban centers, we will also modernize and improve rail systems at the local and regional level," Richard said Friday. California was able to secure more federal aid than expected after Florida, Ohio and Wisconsin turned down money. Before Friday's vote, at least half a dozen Democrats in the 40-member Senate remained opposed, skeptical or uncommitted. Some were concerned about how the vote would impact their political futures, while others were wary about financing and management of the massive project. In recent days, Democratic leaders included more state funding to improve existing rail systems in an effort to entice support for the bullet train. The bill authorizes the state to sell nearly half of a $10 billion high-speed rail bond that voters approved four years ago under Proposition 1A. In addition to financing the first segment of high-speed rail, it allocates a total of $1.9 billion in bonds for regional rail improvements in Northern and Southern California. The upgrades include electrifying Caltrain, a San Jose-San Francisco commuter line, and improving Metrolink commuter lines in Southern California. One dissenter, Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, said public support had waned for the project, and there were too many questions about financing to complete it. "Is there additional commitment of federal funds? There is not. Is there additional commitment of private funding? There is not. Is there a dedicated funding source that we can look to in the coming years? There is not," Simitian said. The Bay Area Council, a group of business leaders from the San Francisco Bay and Silicon Valley areas, cheered the vote. The bill, which already passed the state Assembly, heads to Brown for his signature.[/quote] [url]http://www.dailynews.com/ci_21026602/california-high-speed-rail-gets-green-light?source=most_emailed[/url] Good. Now, make it affordable like the other countries. And gonna be great for tourist as well.

I've always wanted to ride one of these. Too bad California is on the other side of the country.

Bout damn time

it was the dumb idea for the US to completely dig up most of its railways in general

Now you better finish it on time, otherwise it will become a massive money sink like some roadways.

A lot of small time farmers are gonna get hurt though, the railway is going to interrupt irrigation canals, and disturb bee pollination. Some 500 farmers are going to have a railway go through their fields, so be prepared for a drawn out legal battle.

I'd be surprised if it was a suitable replacement to air.

Now watch as our already fucking ridiculous taxes get higher.

It'll never go anywhere; the Automaker Lobbies in Washington will oppose this every step of the way.

[QUOTE=Zambies!;36689510]Now you better finish it on time, otherwise it will become a massive money sink like some roadways.[/QUOTE] What are you talking about, we don't put money into fixing roads, we just fix intersections. Give me a minute. Edit: Dammit, I thought I could find a picture of the sign posted before an intersection near me with the streets named Aberdeen and Avalon. They spent $180,000 to fix a fucking intersection. Just the 4 way intersection, they didn't even care about the rest of the road which is in worse condition then the fucking intersection ever was. We can't disperse state funds properly in my opinion.

[QUOTE=Disotrtion;36689550]A lot of small time farmers are gonna get hurt though, the railway is going to interrupt irrigation canals, and disturb bee pollination. Some 500 farmers are going to have a railway go through their fields, so be prepared for a drawn out legal battle.[/QUOTE] [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eminent_domain]Sucks for them[/url] [editline]9th July 2012[/editline] [QUOTE=Madman_Andre;36689587]It'll never go anywhere; the Automaker Lobbies in Washington will oppose this every step of the way.[/QUOTE] read article plx

First High Speed Railway? Thirty minutes from where I live? Sounds good to me.

[QUOTE=Zambies!;36689597][url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eminent_domain]Sucks for them[/url] [editline]9th July 2012[/editline] read article plx[/QUOTE] Case is actually not as simple as "eminent domain, lolz" and its already being fought in Cali Superior Court.

I never got why America doesn't use trains as much as other countries.

[QUOTE=purvisdavid1;36689579]Now watch as our already fucking ridiculous taxes get higher.[/QUOTE] Love it when Americans complain about taxes. Move to fucking Europe, our taxes are higher but we don't even bitch about them.

[QUOTE=purvisdavid1;36689579]Now watch as our already fucking ridiculous taxes get higher.[/QUOTE] how adorable its like you don't even realize america has some of the lowest tax rates compared to other modern countries

[QUOTE=NotMeh;36689657]Love it when Americans complain about taxes. Move to fucking Europe, our taxes are higher but we don't even bitch about them.[/QUOTE] Yeah, you just bitch about Americans.

[QUOTE=NotMeh;36689657]Love it when Americans complain about taxes. Move to fucking Europe, our taxes are higher but we don't even bitch about them.[/QUOTE] I love it when Europeans claim their taxes are high but don't understand that taxes [b]and[/b] someones standard of living go hand in hand. I'm poor bitch. [editline]9th July 2012[/editline] [QUOTE=Kopimi;36689694]how adorable its like you don't even realize america has some of the lowest tax rates compared to other modern countries[/QUOTE] It's like you don't realize California taxes the fuck out of everything. Sales tax, gas taxes, real estate taxes, property taxes. This is the most expensive state to live in within the United States.

[QUOTE=Zambies!;36689597][url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eminent_domain]Sucks for them[/url] [/QUOTE] Yeah I guess not being able to harvest and failing to make enough money to scrape by is totally okay, and let's ignore the people who will have to look elsewhere for food instead of buying local. Yeah sure, it's totally acceptable.

I'll be one of its first customers, I might even walk to one of the first stations once it's completed

[QUOTE=Upgrade123;36689651]I never got why America doesn't use trains as much as other countries.[/QUOTE] Same reason why mass transit is so rare: driving is cheaper, faster, and often easier. Many areas still have trains that connect to major cities and you'll occasionally see buses driving around, but many people see mass transit as a waste of time and money.

But at least travelling across states by high speed railway will be cheaper/faster than flying shitty american airlines [editline]10th July 2012[/editline] And more comfortable too

[QUOTE=shian;36689877]But at least travelling across states by high speed railway will be cheaper/faster than flying shitty american airlines [editline]10th July 2012[/editline] And more comfortable too[/QUOTE] I wouldn't say they'll be faster (show me a train that goes 500mph and we'll talk), but I agree that it should definitely be cheaper and more comfortable. This also depends on whether or not they can make the cost of riding the train [I]significantly[/I] less than driving (because, currently, it's not), as well as making it more convenient.

Will this also mean more jobs? I mean, someone's gonna have to build these.

[QUOTE=JeanLuc761;36689826]Same reason why mass transit is so rare: driving is cheaper, faster, and often easier. Many areas still have trains that connect to major cities and you'll occasionally see buses driving around, but many people see mass transit as a waste of time and money.[/QUOTE] That and usually a train ticket is two to three times more expensive than a bus ticket.

[QUOTE=JeanLuc761;36689947]I wouldn't say they'll be faster (show me a train that goes 500mph and we'll talk), but I agree that it should definitely be cheaper and more comfortable. This also depends on whether or not they can make the cost of riding the train [I]significantly[/I] less than driving (because, currently, it's not), as well as making it more convenient.[/QUOTE] Faster doesn't just mean one is faster than the other, waiting and loading times also count, and I don't think trains take as long as airplanes to load because the process to get into a plane is longer than getting into a train (thanks to the TSA and all that crap).

[QUOTE=MIPS;36690159]That and usually a train ticket is two to three times more expensive than a bus ticket.[/QUOTE] Well, at least its faster, and the price is worth it. You do know high speed railways have a business class and a cheap one right?

Nice! I was honestly surprised when I learned that USA doesn't have no TGV or something similar.

$65 Billion? Holy shit that's a lot.

Sweet, I drive an hour to LA, then take a train up the state? It better not cost a buttfuck to ride.