PennDOT submitted their first request for Federal High-Speed Rail stimulus money this week totaling $28.2 Million.
Breakdown:
$27.45 Million for improvements along the Harrisburg to Philadelphia line.
$00.75 Million for a feasibility study for increasing service between Harrisburg and Pittsburgh.
The last study [regarding Pittsburgh to Harrisburg] concluded in 2005 that track and signal improvements would be needed if more passenger trains were added, in order to avoid slowing down freight trains.What's changed? 4 years of doing nothing have out-dated this study bringing us back to square one. But 4 years ago, George W. Bush was the acting President of the country, and the last thing he cared about was high-speed rail. Maybe we have a chance for decent rail in Pittsburgh now that we have a President who has a vision for this country. It's only a shame how much money and time has been wasted in the meantime.
And will PennDOT resurrect Maglev and request funding for the next stage there? We have until October 2 to find out.
1 comment:
Nooooooo Maglev! I seriously doubt whether this feasibility study is really a genuine effort on the part of the State of Pennsylvania. The outcome will probably be the same outcome from the 2005 study.
Post a Comment