Comments on: How do you feel about the federal government redistributing Ohio’s rail funds to other states’ rail projects?

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 21:37:00 +0000

Wonder if Obama loaned the money to Brazil to drill offshore down THERE,not here(he already loaned them billions)? Maybe put it into even more ethanol subsidies? Maybe it’s just time to end states. Let Big Brother do everything.

By: jabraben

jabraben — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 19:50:00 +0000

Highways and airports are also heavily subsidized. We do so because we as a society have decided that the economic and social benefits of a robust transportation system are worth the money. It has been a long time since gasoline taxes paid the full cost of roads and the federal government has to take billions from the general fund every year. If we want to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and manage our tax dollars better, we should welcome ways to move more people with less gas, pollution and other costs than roads.

By: jabraben

jabraben — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 19:40:00 +0000

Yes, there are that many people in the 3C travel corridor. It is the most densely populated travel corridor in the U.S. without passenger rail. In fact, there are successful passenger rail systems in areas with lower population densities in the US.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 17:06:00 +0000

Name a highway that supports itself.nnFact is, transportation is highly subsidized and there’s nothing wrong with that. Why does transportation have to pay for itself? This seems like a completely reasonable function of government. This rail system made sense for many reasons. And yes, I would have used it.nnAnd heck, $20 million is probably the Ohio highway mowing and pothole repair budget for a single year. It’s nothing compared to the cost to maintain highways, not to mention build new interchanges. The 70/71 split in Columbus is expected to cost nearly $1 billion. I don’t hear any outcry over that!

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 17:02:00 +0000

I think it is great. Why would anyone want to fund a “high” speed rail system that takes 1 1/2 times longer to get to your destination than driving by car? And, after you get there, you have no transportation unless you rent a car or take a local transit system bus. And we, the taxpayers, have to support it even though we don’t use it. Sounds like a politicians dream – spend more for less.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 16:50:00 +0000

I think it is great. If other states need a rail system that takes longer to get to a destination than driving and then not having transportation (car) when you get there, go for it. Besides it saves us, the taxpayer, many, many dollars to support it.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 16:50:00 +0000

So many conservatives feel that government should be run like a business. Well, businesses are supposed to invest in their businesses in order to draw in customers. Businesses that lose customers either fold up or reinvest in order to win customers back. Ohio is like a business that is losing customers–people who are either moving away from Ohio or refusing to move to Ohio. We want young, smart, talented people to come to Ohio to work and put down roots. Young people are increasingly leaving their cars behind and demanding connectivity in the form of both intracity and intercity rail. Yet, John Kasich has turned a blind eye to this trend, deciding not to invest in the state’s future.nnIt’s a shame that Kasich is pushing Ohio into an era of short-sighted austerity. The very people we want to come into this state and revitalize it demand rail transportation. 3C rail was a start–a vital first link in what promised to be both a statewide and regional network of rail. Ohio was awarded that funding on the basis of its application for rail service precisely because the 3C line would have factored into a larger, integrated system of rail.nnRemember this, folks: oil is trading at about $90 per barrel. The price is volatile, but the trajectory is upward. Continuing to invest exclusively in highways (the 70/71 split in Columbus alone will cost $1.5 BILLION, or 88 years of 3C rail subsidies!) ignores the fact that automotive transportation is rapidly becoming unaffordable. It was foolish not to invest the money that was handed to the state on a silver platter.nnI don’t blame the federal government for diverting those funds elsewhere. The purpose of the funding was to move America into the future. John Kasich, and the people of Ohio, displayed their myopia by turning down this funding for its intended purpose. Better to move it to a state where the leaders and voters have vision.

By: Rebbecca Maxwell

Rebbecca Maxwell — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 15:11:00 +0000

The high speed rail system was going to be the “3C railway” ( Columbus/ Cincinatti/ Cleveland) so are there so many people in Ohio that have to transit on a daily basis between the 3 cities? I don’t think so, and if so surely they aren’t driving it or carpooling. I am originally from Chicago suburbs, we lived in Elgin Ill and my aunt took the train into the city for work daily, it was a one hour ride on the train, along with a couple of thousand other passengers. In that instance yes it was a good thing to have. I remember when she used to try to drive it and she was exhausted all the time, now she gets some work done on the train and can relax at home.

By: Rebbecca Maxwell

Rebbecca Maxwell — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 15:03:00 +0000

what does Ohio need a high speed rail system for? are there actually that many Ohio residents that live in the Columbus area and work in the cincinatti area or Cleveland because it was only going to be the 3C rail system, Col. Cinn. and Cleveland

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 12:51:00 +0000

Returning the Federal money has probably saved the Ohio taxpayer over $20 million over a ten year period in cost everruns and subsidies, which the State of Ohio can ill afford. n Those of you in favor of the rail system, are you actually going to use it, or believe it should be there for other prople?n Can anyone name a mass transit system that supports itself ? If they exist in this country, sure they are very few in number.