LaHood rips Georgia on high-speed rail
Why didn’t Georgia get more money for high-speed rail?
“Georgia doesn’t have its act together. The state legislature doesn’t want to put money in for high-speed rail,” Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said this morning, after I asked him why Georgia only received $750,000.
“Any region that got money had their act together,” LaHood said, at a breakfast briefing for journalists. He also pointed out that he visited Atlanta last year and had an informal “town hall meeting” with several officials. (The visit was in Sept.)
“Some fellow stood up and asked me how Georgia could get money for high-speed rail. I said, ‘Get your act together.” Unless a state has its act together, with money and a plan that connects things, you’re not going to get money.” (See excerpts from a Sept. news story on LaHood’s visit below.)
A journalist from Texas — a state which also fared poorly — asked whether “indigenous political support” had anything to do with whether a state received funding. LaHood assured him that it didn’t. “We’ve given money to states where the Congressional delegation voted against the stimulus package,” he said.
My colleague Jim Galloway has noted that Sonny Perdue and John Lewis have pointed fingers at each other for the state’s poor showing:
Gov. Sonny Perdue and U.S. Rep. John Lewis, Georgia’s longest-serving member of Congress are having words over who’s at fault for the state’s transportation dilemma.
Last week, the Obama administration awarded Florida $1.25 billion for a high-speed rail project. North Carolina was handed $525 million.
And Georgia received $750,000.
Sounds like Lewis may have been right.
From an AJC news story on Sept. 22. 2009:
The nation’s top transportation official said Monday that high-speed rail will indeed come to Atlanta — “if Georgia gets its act together.”
The statement by U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood drew fervent applause from the audience in downtown Atlanta, which included many mass transit advocates who believe Georgia has long neglected passenger rail projects in favor of building more roads.
“He did not lie, ” said Clayton County Commission Chairman Eldrin Bell, who supports the proposed commuter rail line south through Lovejoy.
LaHood met with several organizations, including the Atlanta Regional Commission and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The Obama administration’s priorities for transportation contrast with the Bush administration’s. Bush’s transportation secretary, Mary Peters, last visited Atlanta to give Georgia $110 million to put variable tolls on the HOV lane of I-85 in Gwinnett County. In the Bush administration’s six-point strategy to relieve congestion, the word “rail” was not mentioned.
The Obama administration is putting $8 billion toward high-speed rail. LaHood’s donation event took place at MARTA’s Five Points station, where he gave MARTA $10.8 million in federal stimulus funds for solar-panel bus shelters.
LaHood said he didn’t know about the I-85 project. And while he supported tolling as a way to pay for new roads, he told the AJC, he didn’t much care for putting tolls on lanes that the taxpayers had already built.
Gov. Sonny Perdue attended the MARTA event. Asked what he thought of LaHood’s remark about high-speed rail, Perdue replied, “I agree with him.” The state Department of Transportation has recently appointed a new director of intermodal programs who is working to win some of the high-speed rail money.
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80 comments Add your comment
Joey
February 3rd, 2010
3:25 pm
TarHeel:
I respectfully disagree about what motivates commuters. Convenience, as each person defines convenience for himself, is what determines the mode of transportation he uses. As long as there is more than sufficient parking, most people will choose to drive.
When people talk about traffic into Atlanta from Chattanooga, Greenville, Athens or Macon, one major issue is almost always overlooked. How many of the possible riders have an ultimate destination inside the perimeter. In my mind, not many. So how are they going to get to Fayetteville, or Covington or Snellville or Buford or Canton or Ackworth or Douglasville. They would need to rent cars or transfer to other trains or buses.
Reality is that from Chattanooga, Greenville, Athens or Macon any one can get to any place in metro Atlanta by personal vehicle in 1.5 to 3 hours. Whereas going to the Macon terminal, waiting for then loading on a train, then getting off at some point and finding transportation to Norcross would take 3 to 4 hour and a lot of hassle.
I say all of this and I support the commuter rail. I am just realistic about it use.
Joey
February 3rd, 2010
3:33 pm
TarHeel:
After that 3:20 of yours a legitimate question might be:
Then why are you here?
I regret that I won’t be around until morning to read your response and possibly continue the discussion.
Iconoclast
February 3rd, 2010
4:00 pm
Ever wonder how our society will plunk-down billions of dollars to move a mass of sh_t through tunnels, but we refuse to spend one thin dime moving working people through simialr conduits?
A turd can now get across town faster than its maker!
Priorities people, get your p-r-i-o-r-i-t-i-e-s straight!
ctucker
February 3rd, 2010
4:05 pm
laHood is a Republican, This is what I think.
TarHeelBred bleeds TarHeelBlue
February 3rd, 2010
4:13 pm
Joey: Anyone can get from Chattanooga, Greenville, Athens or Macon to anyplace in Metro Atlanta by personal vehicle in 1.5 to 3 hours IF the weather is clear and the roads are accident-free. If it has been raining or snowing or if a bus catches fire, there is a multi-car pileup, a pedustrian jumps from an overpass, a pedustrian is hit while walking in traffic or there is a wild police chase, that 1.5 to 3 hour-trip can take substantially LONGER.
My job quite frequently takes me all over the metro area and much of Georgia and into surrounding states. I’ve been out on I-75, I-85 and I-20 during morning rush hour trying to get back to Atlanta after a long night of work while an accident, a police action or bad weather incident has had traffic tied up into knots and backed up into a parking lot that stretches for 10, 20 or sometimes close to 30 miles. I’ve seen the really bad traffic on I-75 south during both morning and evening rush hours, I’ve been tied up in Cobb County on I-75 in the morning trying to find an alternate route into the city with no luck (Hwy 41 was gridocked as well). I’ve also been stuck on the 10-lane section of I-85 southbound that “bottlenecks” down to seven southbound lanes in Gwinnett during a morning rush-hour rainstorm and I’ve been stuck in TOTAL gridlock on the six-lane sections of I-20 both east and west of the city during both morning and evening rush hours in backups that were caused by both serious accidents and the mere action of one motorist hitting their brakes. I’ve darn near seen it all when it comes to traffic backups and I can tell you that the state ain’t exactly setting the world ablaze in timely road infrastructure investments either (lack of auxilary “exit-only lanes” between close interchanges causing traffic to frequently bottleneck as well as a lack of HOV lanes, especially on I-20 east, I-20 west and I-75 south).
Also keep in mind that high-speed rail, commuter rail, light rail and heavy rail corridors would becomes nodes that would help guide future development to be more compact and people-friendly as opposed to just car-friendly auto-dependent development we see now. Rail would be a development tool in addition to being a complement to auto travel, which would not become obsolete, but would continue to be a travel option for those that choose it. Don’t forget that trains of all modes would run quite frequently like the METRA commuter trains and the system would integrated to serve high-speed, commuter rail, light rail, heavy rail, local bus and express bus all at the same time so one could take the commuter rail from, lets say, Macon to a Grand Central-type multimodal station at Five Points and transfer to a commuter rail line runs northeast out of the city that parallels I-85 North. That would be only one transfer if one chose to ride commuter rail that day either because they didn’t want to drive or the weather happened to be inclement and they knew that traffic was going to be hellish trying to get up I-75 from Macon through the Henry County bottleneck, up I-675 to I-285 around the Eastside through almost standstill traffic conditions that day (just look at what a few sprinkles on any given day can do to North Georgia traffic).
Barry Osborne
February 3rd, 2010
4:29 pm
I’ve been spotty in my reading and have fallen behind. Who is Muttonhead?
StevenCee
February 3rd, 2010
4:32 pm
Many of the comments here certainly help to explain what the Trans. Sec, meant by Georgia “not having it’s act together”. For some reason, many residents here wish to cling to the past, well, a big part of why the entire metro area is in gridlock.
Whether it’s refusing to support MARTA, for fear black people would follow, or in regards to rail, high-speed or otherwise, believing more pavement will be the solution, we now find the region, and state, falling years behind more forward-thinking places around the country. A modernized railway system would greatly relieve the massive congestion, as well as providing another, less stressful, alternative to having to drive or fly places. And since trains can carry huge amounts of cargo, it would take thousands of trucks off the roads, another big plus.
WIthout Atlanta providing a better quality of life, an educated populace, and a progressive-minded government, we’ll soon see the end of companies & people choosing to make this their home. Then let’s see what the unemployment figures look like!
TarHeelBred bleeds TarHeelBlue
February 3rd, 2010
4:36 pm
Joey: In response to your question at 3:33 pm, I am in Georgia because it is a great state with an increasingly international flair and a ton of potential upside and a state with a fairly robust job market in good economic times. Despite of all of its potential, Georgia has got to “get its act together” when its comes to investing in infrastructure of all forms, especially roads, rail and education. “Getting its act together” doesn’t mean coming up with another new transportation plan, it means having the political will and leadership to execute the myriad of rail and road plans it already has and having the creativity to get the plan funded and enacted in both the worst and best of economic and political environments.
If the public won’t let you fund a transportation plan through a tax increase then use the state’s AAA bond-rating to buy bonds to get the critically-needed infrastructure built and pay those bonds back and maintain the new infrastructure through increased user fees in form of higher fares and tolls on highways. Take on public-private partnerships. Grow a backbone, exhibit a spine and show some leadership, show some courage, show some political will and have some vision on an issue that is oh-so-very critical to the state’s future. Don’t cower and hide from every loudmouth interest group that raises an objection, take the time to do your job and explain why action on this issue MUST be done immediately.
Dudecicle
February 3rd, 2010
4:47 pm
“Georgia, the land of broad boulevards and narrow minds.”
Doug Alexander
February 3rd, 2010
6:14 pm
CT, we have more studies than we know what to do with. I know, I helped write some of them. We know what will work, both for commuter and for intercity rail. We just need to get busy building the system. We could have already had such trains into and out of Atlanta and throughout Ga. but there are muttonheads on both sides of the aisle under the dome and we’ve gotten nowhere.
Don
February 4th, 2010
8:31 am
Tarheel and Doug Alexander have it exactly right.
GA’s only project submitted for the “HSR sweepstakes” was for 79 mph service between Macon and Atlanta, with a vague, longer term plan for 110 mph service on the route. First and foremost, the top half of the line is the Lovejoy/Griffin commuter rail line that the state has left Fed $$ lay on the table for years now because the state Gov’t can’t come up with the match to get construction started. Strike one. Second, the plan just barely meets the criteria for an “emerging HSR corridor” since there isn’t really much meat behind the eventual increase to 110 mph speeds. Strike two. Finally, the ridership on that line compared to the others proposals that won would be tiny. Strike three, you’re out! Low ridership corridor + slow speed + excellent chance the state gov’t would ignore the grant = FAILURE.
Lt Col
February 4th, 2010
9:40 am
Just to set the record straight, High-Speed-Rail is NOT a transit program. It’s a rail program under the Federal Railroad Administration. “Commuter rail” is transit – intercity rail isn’t.
Georgia is missing out on many opportunities to improve both transit and rail services in the state. Money is the problem. Georgia is the only state in the country to NOT subsidize transit systems, like MARTA. Georgia’s constitution prohibits the use of gasoline taxes to be used to fund alternative modes of transportation. The highway construction lobbists have ensured that it stays that way. Meanwhile, thousands of commuters are stuck in Atlanta’s traffic, millions of gallons of gasoline are consumed by cars that are going nowhere, and tons of noxious emissions are polluting the very air we breathe.
Georgia must “get its act together” if it has any hope of Federal monies to alleviate its transportation quagmire.
ctucker
February 4th, 2010
9:44 am
Excellent comments, Lt. Col. I tried to make that clarification, as well.
ctucker
February 4th, 2010
11:31 am
Snark, I think I should apply for it, don’t you?
The Snark
February 4th, 2010
11:52 am
Oh hell yes.
The Snark, as always, tips his hat to your fine work.
Art Vandalay
February 4th, 2010
1:11 pm
Enter your comments here
Art Vandalay
February 4th, 2010
1:16 pm
I Agree 100% that we need commuter rail first, we may be the largest metro area not to have any. BUT to say the traffic in Atlanta is so bad that it will affect our ability to attract and retain businesses is just stupid. Have you been to Knoxville, Nashville, Orlando, Jacksonville, Tampa…studies can come to ATL and continue polling the few people that commute from Canton and Cartersville about their commute, but for the majority of us the rush hour traffic in those cities is exponentially worse, and they are much smaller metro areas. Atlanta likes to complain about its congestion but it honestly is no worse than many other places. Go drive at rush hour in Chicago which has commuter rail, 1000 times worse than Atlanta. We need rail for future growth but currently our situation isn’t dire.
scott
February 4th, 2010
1:20 pm
I’m not transportation analyst, but taking away the two middle lanes of 75 has always seemed like the easiest solution…… we need inner city rails on all major surface roads…. I know our roads seem really long, and rail seems like too much…. but if we don’t do it now, we will regret it a lot more when we finally figure out we need rail in georgia and theres absolutly no more room….. That’s when rail will cost 1 trillion in georgia
RP
February 4th, 2010
3:08 pm
Who the heck edited this post? Ms. Tucker needs to go back to school for an elementary spelling/grammar refresher on the proper use of ‘it’s’ versus ‘its.’ Unbelievable.
ctucker
February 4th, 2010
3:13 pm
RP, I’m so sorry my blog grammar isn’t up to your standards. I assure you I know the difference between the possessive ‘its” and the contraction “it’s.” But I write the posts quickly and don’t edit as carefully as I should. Should I hold your reponses to the same standard?
sean
February 5th, 2010
10:16 am
A high speed rail between major towns is a great idea. Do you all remember $4.50 gallon of gas?
Have you all not traveled up to Charlotte / DC on any given evening? The traffic is packed with trucks ( LOTS OF TRUCKS ) and cars all the way there.
Rail will not be like the subways in NYC. It needs to be from airport to airport so it can tag up with the infrastructure already around the airport ( hotels, rental cars, etc ). It has to have limited stops in between. No stops at every corner. When a major storm hits the east coast, people stranded at the airports could still travel to the northeast by train. If rail service stays to this idea it will do well.
Cars will always be here, rail is just another option to help move us along.
Catching up with High-Speed Rail Coverage « On Board Midwest
February 5th, 2010
10:38 am
[...] including Georgia, are reeling over the lack of funding they received. When a reporter from the Atlanta Journal Constitution asked LaHood why Georgia only received $750,000, he commented, “Unless a state has its act [...]
Joe Schmoe
February 7th, 2010
7:59 am
A well running highspeed rail system is a joy for travel compared to modern commercial airlines and the TSA. I don’t have insight into the economics of the Japanese or European systems, but as a traveler I think they are awesome and I wish I could travel that way in my own country.
Don
February 9th, 2010
2:42 pm
The Japanese and European HSR systems cover their operating costs and then some. Their “conventional” passenger trains generally do not. It’s no different here. Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor and Acela trains cover their operating costs. The rest of the Amtrak network does not.
Trent Hastings
February 10th, 2010
11:24 am
In order for GDOT to get it’s act together for HSR and transit they need to fire Erik Steavens. He is dishonest, incompetent and common joke amongst transportation professionals.
Streetsblog Capitol Hill » Who Lost Out in the Bid for a Piece of TIGER Transportation Stimulus?
February 17th, 2010
2:49 pm
[...] (Photo: GA Transit Connector)Georgia found itself on the sidelines again, less than a month after it failed to secure a significant share of the stimulus pot for high-speed rail. After spending an estimated [...]
Streetsblog New York City » Who Lost Out in the Bid for a Piece of TIGER Transportation Stimulus?
February 17th, 2010
4:09 pm
[...] (Photo: GA Transit Connector)Georgia found itself on the sidelines again, less than a month after it failed to secure a significant share of the stimulus pot for high-speed rail. After spending an estimated [...]
Streetsblog San Francisco » Who Lost Out in the Bid for a Piece of TIGER Transportation Stimulus?
February 17th, 2010
6:50 pm
[...] (Photo: GA Transit Connector)Georgia found itself on the sidelines again, less than a month after it failed to secure a significant share of the stimulus pot for high-speed rail. After spending an estimated [...]
CliffATL
February 21st, 2010
12:32 pm
WOW…. I’m getting in late on the comments. Here goes: Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood should have been more specific. Instead of saying” Georgia needs to get its act together”; he should have said, “GEORGIA NEEDS DEDICATED FUNDING TO OPERATING ANY RAIL SERVICES (including HSR) THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PAYS TO BUILD IN GEORGIA.
Dedicated funding just like Ga’s gasoline tax which funds the local match for state roads/bridges — dedicated funding (possibly state sales tax) could fund a repurposed GRTA (Georgia Rail Transportation Authority) to build, manage, and operate intercity rail, commuter rail, interstate HSR and freigh rail improvements.
See the entire plan: http://www.examiner.com/x-25727-Atlanta-Metro-Transportation-Examiner~y2010m1d4-Legislators-2010-Transportation-Needs-in-Georgia
C
April 2nd, 2010
1:54 am
We need rail travel from atlanta to gainesville and intercity commuter express lines from atlanta to all of the bigger otp communities. Time to quit listening to your preacher folks – and start thinking for yourselves. No doubt atlanta gets millions from all of the cars on the roads, but it makes commuting/going anywhere suck. We have a really great road system here to, long exit ramps few potholes etc what a shame that it is inundated with way to many cars!