I hate to say it, but my home state, Texas, has alot to learn from other "pro-rail" states. We have so much open land down here, I dont see why we shouldnt have one of the most effective passenger rail systems in the country.
Although our politicians make those in Alaska,NJ,Ill,LA etc. seem like brillant visionaries, we slowly are starting to get it here in Texas! Even DFW and HOS are jumping on the mass transit bandwagon, Austin is behind but the RedLine is runn ing! :lol: The TXDOT, which used to be called the Highway Dept.
and is peopled by squadrons or Aggie traffic engineers, has a new rail divsion, ironically our RailRoad Commission is more involved with Gas and Oil, only in Texas! Id think Arizona, La.,GA and perhaps Florida might be the most anti-rail states now, and lets not forget that one of our Senators (Kay Bailey)
saved the Eagles and Sunset in Texas when all our last few presidents wanted Amtrak to go away! Im impressed with what some states are doing,especially with HSR and creating new routes, special shout-outs to Wisconsin/Illinois,North Carolina,Missouri(even with a screwed up MORR new schedule!) and Washington State/Oregon!(The Ohio CCC sounds iffy, lots of just say no types trying to kill it seems like,Im sure ALC and jeff have more on this!)
Without more federal funding (what are the chances that the just say no Republicans will support anything Obama proposes?), considering that most states are hurting, and that it's an election year money will have to come from federal/state partnerships! Im especially concerned with the situation in California which has been in the passenger rail forefront for so long! They say what happens in California will come to your state in two weeks,two months,
and in the case of the South twenty years! :lol: