Obama calls for high-speed rail…”saying it will relieve congestion, help clean the air and save on energy.”
Since Amtrak is working out so well for the public already, it does make a lot of sense to expand it. As for the alleged “greenness” of this mode of travel -
However, the evidence shows that Amtrak is by no means a particularly energy-efficient mode of travel. Based on the Department of Energy data that Amtrak’s advocates cite, the preferred green solution would be to move Amtrak passengers to intercity buses, van pools, and hybrid cars. Ending Amtrak’s federal subsidy could accomplish these environmental and energy goals overnight.
Porkulus already allocated $8 billion for this, but look for even more money to be shoveled into this pit whenever Stimulus II hits the books. (And you know it will…)
Wow…what an idiot
There used to be a high-speed rail network in this country, but the government strangled it with taxes and regulation (the were forced to operate unprofitable routes, could not combine service, etc). See the Wikipedia article on Amtrak. Hard to get the numbers for railroad taxation, but it looks like Union Pacific Railroad (one of 4 railroad companies) paid $1.3 billion in income taxes in 2008, $1.1 billion for 2007, and $0.92 billion in 2006*. Imagine if the federal government forbid taxation of railroads: if passenger service could be profitable, they would build it themselves with their own money. Zero cost to — although zero revenue for — governments.
*See page 34: http://www.up.com/investors/attachments/secfiling/2009/upc10k_020609.pdf