The Hundred Billion Dollar Boondoggle
Right now, Californians are well on their way to making a huge mistake. The Los Angeles to San Francisco high-speed rail line indeeds sounds great on paper. The idea that in just a few hours, you can head from the South to the Bay Area with stops in the Central Valley, sounds appealing. Yet, time after time, history shows us that this expensive mass-transit project will not work.
The Big Dig:
Originally supposed to be a $5 billion dollar project and ended up over $20 billion dollars. If you think California has an accurate idea on the final costs of building this project, then I have some beachfront land to sell you in Bakersfield.
Ridership:
Will there be enough people using high speed rail to pay it’s own way, or will taxpayers indefinitely be subsidizing it similar to Amtrak? Will the rates be affordable enough to justify a train ride and eliminating one vehicle on the road?
Mass Transit Only Works In Certain Areas:
Only in regions where travel by car is irrefutably difficult does mass transit truly work. Communities like New York and Chicago are examples where it has worked. But larger regions with more urban sprawl such as Southern California have made mass transit practical for only a small subset of the driving population.
Environment:
High Speed Rail is not without environmental concerns, including one of the canyons they wish to build to bypass the freeway in the Bay Area.
T.M. Schultze is a San Diego-based photographer, traveller, and writer. He writes, photographs, and draws things of the outdoors that have inspired humans for thousands of years. He co-authored the Photographer’s Guide to Joshua Tree Park which can be purchased here.