Houston-Dallas could get $10 billion bullet train

[freeatlast]

Here we go again. More debt with no way to pay for it. Our leaders are totally out of control...
http://blog.chron.com/newswatch/2012/05/houston-dallas-could-get-10-billion-bullet-train/

 

[Robert Snow]

Good! If there is anything Houston needs it's better public transportation.

 

[Don]

Free - what debt are you referring to?

A group including former Harris County Judge Robert Eckels, now president of Texas Central Railway, and representatives from Central Japan Railway Co. met Wednesday in Arlington to discuss plans to raise $10 billion from private investors to fund the project, which would allow passengers to travel between the two cities at 200 mph, the newspaper said.

Now Hawaii, on the other hand, is looking to the federal government to help subsidize their own rail project, and has even basically started on the project with the optimistic approach that the Feds will some day actually make good on their promise....

 

[freeatlast]

Free - what debt are you referring to?



Now Hawaii, on the other hand, is looking to the federal government to help subsidize their own rail project, and has even basically started on the project with the optimistic approach that the Feds will some day actually make good on their promise....

10 billion dollars to build it. That is debt because no business man is going to put that kind of money into a project unless there is some guarantee that he is going to get it back and soon.
Houston’s Rep. Shelia Jackson Lee has rallied for support for high-speed rail and sought $15 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation to fund a route between Houston and Dallas

 

[Don]

Totally agree with you on the part about Ms. Lee seeking federal funding to help subsidize it; as I mentioned, that's not working out well for Hawaii.

As for the debt to private investors -- first thing I thought of when I read that was, "how much are they going to charge people to ride on the thing?"

St. Louis, for example, has a Metro; it's cheap public transportation, but it's not free. I see no way they're going to build this thing in Houston and then let people ride for free. Anyone who thinks otherwise is drinking the Obama kool-aid big time.

 

[LadyEagle]

Free? More fed loan guarantees like Solyndra? That worked out well for we, the taxpayer. Sheesh!