QuoteMCCAIN OBJECTS TO $4 BILLION IN PORKBARREL PROJECTS IN FY'02 TRANSPORTATION APPROPRIATIONS BILL, from McCain Website:
December 4, 2001
(Note: The Statement of Managers includes an identical list that earmarks funds appropriated for new fixed guideway systems in the same amounts and to the same projects.)
Alaska or Hawaii ferry projects 10,296,000
Light rail project Albuquerque, New Mexico 1,000,000
North line extension project Atlanta, Georgia 25,000,000
Central light rail transit double track project Baltimore, Maryland 13,000,000
Rail transit project Baltimore, Maryland 1,500,000
Transit corridor project Birmingham, Alabama 2,000,000
South Boston Piers transit way project Boston, Massachusetts 10,631,245
South corridor light rail transit project Charlotte, North Carolina 7,000,000
Douglas branch reconstruction projects Chicago, Illinois 32,750,000
METRA commuter rail and line extension projects Chicago, Illinois 55,000,000
Ravenswood reconstruction project Chicago, Illinois 3,000,000
Euclid corridor transportation project Cleveland, Ohio 6,000,000
North Central light rail transit extension project Dallas, Texas 70,000,000
Southeast corridor light rail transit project Denver, Colorado 55,000,000
Southwest corridor light rail transit project Denver, Colorado 192,492
DSM bus feasibility project Des Moines, Iowa 150,000
Light rail feasibility project Dubuque, Iowa 200,000
Dulles corridor bus rapid transit project, Virginia 25,000,000
Tri-County commuter rail upgrades project Fort Lauderdale, Florida 27,000,000
Trinity railway express project Fort Worth, Texas 2,000,000
ITP metro area, major corridor project Grand rapids, Michigan 750,000
Bus rapid transit project Honolulu, Hawaii 12,000,000
Metro advanced transit project Houston, Texas 10,000,000
Metrolink light rail feasibility project, Iowa 300,000
I-35 commuter rail project Johnson County, Kansas Kansas City, Missouri 1,500,000
Commuter rail extension project Kenosha-Racine-Milwaukee, Wisconsin 2,000,000
Metrorail extension project Largo, Maryland 55,000,000
River rail project Little Rock, Arkansas 2,000,000
Long Island Rail Road East Side access project, New York 14,744,420
North Hollywood extension project Los Angeles, California 9,289,557
East Side corridor light rail transit project Los Angeles, California 7,500,000
Commuter rail extension project Lowell, MA and Nashua, NH 3,000,000
MARC commuter rail improvements projects Maryland 12,000,000
Medical center rail extension project Memphis, Tennessee 19,170,000
South Miami-Dade busway extension project Miami, Florida 5,000,000
Northstar corridor commuter rail project Minneapolis-Rice, Minnesota 10,000,000
Hiawatha corridor light rail transit project Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota 50,000,000
East corridor commuter rail project Nashville, Tennessee 4,000,000
New Jersey Hudson-Bergen light rail transit project, New Jersey 141,000,000
Canal Street car line project New Orleans, Louisiana 15,000,000
Desire corridor streetcar project New Orleans, Louisiana 1,200,000
Second Avenue subway project New York, New York 2,000,000
Rail link project Newark-Elizabeth, New Jersey 20,000,000
Downtown corridor project Northeast Indianapolis, Indiana 2,500,000
South Shore commuter rail project Indiana 2,500,000
Light rail extension project Oceanside-Escondido, California 6,500,000
Central Ohio North corridor rail (COTA) project, Ohio 500,000
Commuter rail and maintenance facility project Pawtucket-TF Green, Rhode Island 5,000,000
Schuylkill Valley metro project Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 9,000,000
Central Phoenix/East Valley corridor project Phoenix, Arizona 10,000,000
North Shore connector light rail transit project Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 8,000,000
Stage II light rail transit reconstruction project Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 18,000,000
Interstate MAX light rail transit extension project Portland, Oregon 64,000,000
RTA Sounder commuter rail project Puget Sound, Washington 20,000,000
Triangle transit project Raleigh, North Carolina 9,000,000
Light rail transit extension project Sacramento, California 328,000
CBD to University light rail transit project Salt Lake City, Utah 14,000,000
University Medical Center light rail transit extension project Salt Lake City, Utah 3,000,000
Mission Valley East light rail project San Diego, California 60,000,000
Mid Coast corridor project San Diego, California 1,000,000
BART extension to the airport project San Francisco, California 75,673,790
Tasman West light rail transit project San Jose, California 113,336
Tren Urbano project San Juan, Puerto Rico 40,000,000
Light rail project Sioux City, Iowa 1,700,000
Metrolink extension project St. Louis-St. Clair, Missouri 1,700,000
Urban transitway project Stamford, Connecticut 5,000,000
Altamont commuter rail project Stockton, California 3,000,000
Virginia Railway Express station improvements project, Virginia 3,000,000
Wilsonville to Beaverton commuter rail project Washington County, Oregon 500,000
Alternative route project Wasilla, Alaska 2,500,000
Area regional transportation system project 400,000
FTA Total $1,111,088,840
QuoteFeb 26, 03 McCain Senate Website AMTRAK search:
"Tough decisions need to be made about where intercity service makes economic sense, how service can be operated most efficiently, and the appropriate cost-sharing roles for the federal government, the states, and other stakeholders," McCain said. "The Committee's hearings will solicit new approaches to these issues."
QuoteJan 28, 08 From Renew America:
The Arizonan has said shutting down Amtrak â€" he's if elected â€" would be "a non-negotiable issue" for him. Short-sighted, indeed
QuoteFeb. 15, FOX News:
In addition, McCain's plan proposes breaking the railroad up into three units: an operations unit, a maintenance unit and a rail reservation unit. Each unit would then be privatized within four years, and an Amtrak Control Board would be created to oversee the process.
House Democrats gave the Amtrak Reform Council's report a cool reception on Thursday, citing concerns with the potential impact of privatization.
QuoteJune 22, 08, Huntington News.net
Speaking of McCain, he represents the third term of George W. Bush when it comes to Amtrak: the article points out that McCain was a "staunch opponent of subsidies to Amtrak when he was chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee. Barack Obama, the probable Democratic nominee, was a co-sponsor of the Senate version of the bill to provide an 80/20 financing match."
QuoteJuly 1, 08, Maryland Senator Ben Cardin:
Even in the era of $4/gal gasoline, not many elected officials would go on record with such heresies. But that may be changing. Gas tax "holiday" talk has all but evaporated over the past few weeks as pols promote transit as an answer to higher gas prices. And a column in today's Boston Globe predicts that Senator John McCain's dogged and sustained effort to undermine Amtrak could create an opening for transit-friendly Barack Obama heading into November.
Well at least he is consistant...Maybe a train ran over his puppy as a child? Ave Maria Pues...
McCain? Try some of this in your pipe, and smoke it!
QuoteNine Environmental Benefits of Train Travel:
A train uses up to 70% less energy and causes up to 85% less air pollution when compared to a jet aircraft.
Rail network has lower impact on environment than superhighway with same capacity.
Conversion of rail infrastructure to electric easier than creating an electric automobile infrastructure.
Trains use 5 times less fuel than a car per passenger kilometer.
A revised rail system will provide a huge number of jobs, reasonably evenly spread across the country, and would help promote a sense of connection between people, their work, and the environment.
Train stations typically do not need the land area of a typical commercial airport.
Rail has access to city centers, where air passengers need to use additional transportation from the airport.
Rail travel reduces road congestion, which reduces idle cars spewing greenhouse gasses.
Embedded energy required to expand rail system is less than that necessary to replace auto fleet with high-efficiency personal vehicles.
OCKLAWAHA
McCain would be a complete disaster for Amtrak and transit agencies... and for any city looking to make transit improvements.
Wow. So McCain really hates mass transit. What's his solution for our transportation issues? He certainly can't believe that drilling in the Gulf is the answer to our problems. What else is up his sleeve?
Quote from: Lunican on July 29, 2008, 11:14:43 PM
McCain would be a complete disaster for Amtrak and transit agencies... and for any city looking to make transit improvements.
I don't know about any city. I could see McCain spending a couple of billion for a state-of-the-art subway system in Bagdad.
GUESS WHERE THIS IS?
(http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/iraq/images/baghdad-train-station_040814-f-5964b-013.jpg)
(http://www.mideastimage.com/photo/slideshow/BaghdadTrain%20Station%201959.jpg)
That nice new train is departing Baghdad, and now a "NEW" railway will connect it with Jordan, via Syria, wonder who voted for that? Oh and the second photo, the rebuilt Union Station, er, "Transportation Center". Looks like 10 tracks and 5 platforms. Or about 5x what is left in Jacksonville.
OCKLAWAHA
I used to read lightrailnow.org fairly frequently. I remember reading an article about McCain opposing the light rail system in Phoenix. He said the projected ridership didn't justify the cost. With JTA's miserable record of ridership we may be in trouble with any administration in getting funding. We need a well thought out system that incorporates dense transit oriented development.
We should not have to rely on the any federal administration or deal with their loopholes to determine what we believe is best for the future of our community.
To this effect, we should take a page out of Houston's, Birmingham's and Austin's books and think outside of the box on how to immediately move forward with a mass transit master plan and a rail starter line. We have enough bullets (s-line ROW, $100 million BJP funds, Amtrak funding, CSX/JaxPort rail relocation, Orlando commuter rail deal, private developers, etc.) in our gun already. Now its time to stop making excuses and use them in our fight against sprawl, rising gas costs and traffic congestion.
I agree with you on not relying on the federal goverment to give us funding with a bunch of strings attached. I think Austin has a great example of what can be done with limited resources. I don't know if you remember me Ennis but I spoke out against BRT at the Kent Campus meeting. I moved to Springfield in June. I am interested in having a quality transit system in Jax.
Yes, I remember you. How are you enjoying living in Springfield? I'm hoping that one day in the near future, Springfield residents will have multiple rail options for their district, connecting it with the rest of the city.
I love it. The people here are awesome. I usually work until 7:30 p.m. I would like to meet up with you guys at Hola on Tuesday. The food is awesome there. It may be a couple of weeks but I will be there!!!
Let me know when your coming alta, I will be there too.
BTW, Does anyone know if McCain has EVER said ANYTHING positive about Transit or Rail?
Ocklawaha
What is Obama saying?
Obama claims to support Amtrak and transit. Does anyone have his record. Does he have a record?
I am sure Obama has made statements supporting both sides of the issue. ;)
RiversideGator, He DID support the new Amtrak bill, but then in a speach in Denver went on the attack saying how great his plans were for Amtrak.
"His Plans" was nothing more then the midwest high-speed rail initiative, which he stood and read to cheers almost to a word. I'm not even sure he was born when that plan was hatched, though it has recently come to the forefront.
I got the feeling without the old text he would be as lost as JTA at a streetcar convention. But not unlike JTA, he isn't a real enemy of RAIL as McCain is, he is just not a railroad man.
OCKLAWAHA
Quote from: Lunican on July 31, 2008, 01:07:56 PM
Obama claims to support Amtrak and transit. Does anyone have his record. Does he have a record?
Here is a link to his position....its important to note that neither Clinton nor McCain had a transportation/infrastructure position on their websites during the primary season.
http://www.barackobama.com/issues/additional/#transportation (http://www.barackobama.com/issues/additional/#transportation)
Thank for the link, tufsu1. Its refreshing to see, since the federal government has been heavily anti mass transit in the last eight years.
Here is an excerpt:
QuoteSupport Amtrak Funding:
Barack Obama has been a strong supporter of federal financial support for Amtrak. Obama believes we need to reform Amtrak to improve accountability. In many parts of the country, Amtrak is the only form of reliable transportation. In the U.S. Senate, Obama is a cosponsor of the Passenger Rail Investment and Innovation Act of 2007, a leading act to provide long-term federal investment to Amtrak. As president, Barack Obama will continue to fight for Amtrak funding and reform so that individuals, families and businesses throughout the country have safe and reliable transportation options.
Support Development of High-Speed Freight and Passenger Rail:
Barack Obama supports development of high-speed rail networks across the country. Providing passengers with safe high-speed rail will have significant environmental and metropolitan planning advantages and help diversify our nation’s transportation infrastructure. Our domestic rail freight capacity must also be strengthened because our demand for rail transportation has never been greater, leaving many key transportation hubs stretched to capacity. Obama is committed to renewing the federal government’s commitment to high speed rail so that our nation’s transportation infrastructure continues to support, and not hinder, our nation’s long-term economic growth.
PDF: http://www.barackobama.com/issues/pdf/FactSheetTransportation.pdf
Here's more:
QuoteInvest in Public Transportation:
Public transit not only reduces the amount of time individuals spend commuting, but also has significant benefits to air quality, public health and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Barack Obama will re-commit federal resources to public mass transportation projects across the country. Obama will work with state and local governments across the country on efforts to create new, effective public transportation systems and modernize our aging urban public transit infrastructure.
Create Greater Incentives for Public Transit Usage:
The federal tax code rewards driving to work by allowing employers to provide parking benefits of $205 per month tax free to their employees. The tax code provides employers with commuting benefits for transit, carpooling or vanpooling capped at $105 per month. This gives drivers a nearly 2:1 advantage over transit users. Obama will reform the tax code to make benefits for driving and public transit or ridesharing equal.
Strengthen Metropolitan Planning to Cut Down Traffic Congestion:
Our communities will better serve all of their residents if we are able to leave our cars, to walk, bicycle and have access other transportation alternatives. As president, Barack Obama will re-evaluate the transportation funding process to ensure that smart growth considerations are taken into account. Obama will build upon his efforts in the Senate to ensure that more Metropolitan Planning Organizations create policies to incentivize greater bicycle and pedestrian usage of roads and sidewalks. As president, Obama will work to provide states and local governments with the resources they need to address sprawl and create more livable communities.
Quote from: thelakelander on July 31, 2008, 03:15:42 PM
Thank for the link, tufsu1. Its refreshing to see, since the federal government has been heavily anti mass transit in the last eight years.
sure thing...its amazing how different the two candidates/parties are on this issue (and many others)....and yet, many Americans are still undecided!
Long but interesting article on the subject.
QuoteGilded Highways
Why the government is spending $100 billion a year to get you to drive more.
Daniel Gross
Newsweek Web Exclusive
Updated: 11:36 AM ET Jul 31, 2008
The Transportation Department reported that Americans drove 9.6 billion fewer miles in May 2008 than in May 2007, a 3.7 percent drop. The result: rising demand for mass transit and declining revenues for the Federal Highway Trust Fund, which is funded by gas taxes. The Bush administration's counterintuitive policy response, as the New York Times reported, has been for the Highway Trust Fund to borrow funds from the department's mass-transit account.
Naturally, many urban-dwelling, car-hating socialists (as well as suburban-dwelling, Jeep-driving moderates like me) believe this is precisely the time to put more government fundsâ€"not lessâ€"into alternate modes of transportation: natural-gas powered buses, bicycle-sharing programs, trains, light-rail systems, subways, ferries, and rickshaws. The notion that the government should invest more in mass-transit infrastructure has always raised conservative hackles. As they sit on the Amtrak Acela, or ride the New York City subway or Washington, D.C., Metro, to their think-tank jobs or to the Wall Street Journal's offices, free-market types frequently fulminate against the systems that ferry them around. (New York Times house libertarian John Tierney's "Amtrak Must Die" from 2002 is a classic in the genre.) To such critics, money spent on mass transit, such as the $1.3 billion 2007 appropriation for Amtrak (here's Amtrak's 2007 annual report) represents an unconscionable waste of taxpayer funds. With their top-down bureaucracies and public ownership, they argue, mass-transit systems can never hope to compete economically with the private-sector alternativeâ€"driving gasoline-powered cars. They can't compete culturally and socially, either, since rugged American individualists prefer sitting by themselves in traffic to rubbing shoulders with strangers. And for those few areas where it does make sense to have mass transit, the market will step in and provide.
This is one of the oldest political arguments in America. For a good chunk of the 19th century, the prospect of the federal government supporting "internal improvements"â€"i.e., canals, ports, roadsâ€"was a major source of partisan contention. Ultimately, the Jeffersonians and Jacksonians (and their heirs) lost out to the Whigs (and their heirs). Whether it was the Erie Canal, the first transcontinental railroad, or the interstate highway system, state and federal resources have repeatedly been deployed to build new types of transportation infrastructure that the private sector couldn't, or wouldn't, fund. Over time, these investments paid huge economic, social, and national-security dividends to the country.
What hasn't been acknowledged is that the automobile is supported by a government subsidy that dwarfs anything provided to mass transit. How big is the subsidy? By my (admittedly extremely crude) calculations, it could total nearly $100 billion per year. Americans can drive so much because there is an extremely extensive system of (largely free) roads for us to use. Despite some private-sector efforts, maintaining and building the nation's roads remains almost exclusively the preserve of government. Data from the Census Bureau on construction spending shows that this year, public spending on highways and streets is running at an annual rate of about $75 billion.
But that's not all. Tax credits and breaks for particular types of economic activity constitute a public subsidy of that activity. Taxpayers effectively subsidize home ownership through the mortgage interest deduction. They subsidize the use of mass transit through programs that permit people to purchase mass-transit tickets with pretax money. And taxpayers subsidize the purchase and operation of gas-powered automobiles in at least two big ways.
First, just as they can with other types of equipment, businesses and self-employed individuals can write down the cost of cars and trucks they own against their taxable income. This decade, the relevant portion of the tax code dealing with the issue, Section 179, was changed to provide extra taxpayer support for the purchase of very large cars. In 2003, as part of an effort to stimulate business investment, the law was changed to significantly increase the amount of deductions businesses could take on equipment, including vehicles that weighed more than 3 tons. (In the past, that category would have been limited to commercial vehicles, such as pickup trucks and moving vans. But in SUV-crazy America, that also means Hummers and Escalades.) So if a Realtor bought a $75,000 Hummer and used it mostly for business, she could take a $25,000 deduction from her taxable income in the first year of ownership. The stimulus package passed earlier this year included provisions that boosted the amount of total deductions businesses could take on equipment. But taxpayers aren't just subsidizing the purchase of gas-guzzlers by businesses. Thanks to tax credits for hybrids, they're also subsidizing the purchase of gas-sippers by individuals.
Self-employed individuals and businesses can also deduct the costs of operating a car for business purposes from their taxable income. In light of higher gas prices, the Internal Revenue Service this year boosted the mileage allowance to 58.5 cents per mile. A self-employed salesperson who drives 5,000 miles a year and is in the 33 percent tax bracket can thus save about $1,000 in tax payments. (The language of the allowance suggests that it applies only to carsâ€"not to bicycles, scooters, or motorcycles.)
URL: http://www.newsweek.com/id/149693
I'd like to see some breakdown on the highway funding. Is all of it via gas taxes, or is it other government funding too, by and large. Obviously the Better Jax Plan used sales taxes to pay for about a billion dollars of highway construction, in addition to the $100mm for mass transit. Imagine if those figures were reversed.
BTW, when Delaney was mayor, there were quarterly progress reports on the BJP. Does the city still provide those?
Quote from: tufsu1 on July 31, 2008, 05:03:01 PM
Quote from: thelakelander on July 31, 2008, 03:15:42 PM
Thank for the link, tufsu1. Its refreshing to see, since the federal government has been heavily anti mass transit in the last eight years.
sure thing...its amazing how different the two candidates/parties are on this issue (and many others)....and yet, many Americans are still undecided!
That's because the ISSUSES don't get discussed.
QuoteObama Makes Quick Stop in Lakeland
...“The last recession in Florida ended with the election of a Democrat,’’ Obama said in an interview with The Ledger, referring to the election of Bill Clinton in 1992.
“We need to assure people that they will have health care, college access and affordable housing,†he said.
Obama said Republicans have done little to strengthen the economy and deal quickly with the crisis in the mortgage industry. And the record is as bad with energy, he noted, when asked about Republican nominee-apparent John McCain’s camp criticizing his energy plan.
They haven’t really paid attention. I have a plan to infuse $15 billion a year creating a transportation system, alternative fuels and dealing with the problem,’’ he said. “We have a plan. The McCain camp doesn’t, meaning for the last couple of weeks all you have heard is about Britney Spears and Paris Hilton,’’ a reference to Republican ads making fun of Obama’s celebrity status.
The Illinois senator’s brief stop was part of his two-day “I-4 Corridor’’ tour, which will continue with a town hall meeting in Brevard County on Saturday and a speech to the National Urban League’s annual conference in Orlando later that afternoon.
full article: http://www.theledger.com/article/20080801/NEWS/84486634/1410&title=Obama_Makes_Quick_Stop_in_Lakeland