Train Trouble Down The Tracks
No real surprises here: operating costs for the vaunted light-rail Lynx Blue Line are expected to soar, with projections pointing toward a whopping 55 percent increase over four years. Charlotte Area Transit System officials blame required maintenance for the spike.
“Hopefully the costs will begin to stabilize,” CATS administration manager Dee Pereira tells the uptown paper.
So yes, by all means, let’s keep our fingers crossed, continue to ignore reality, and keep pushing for a streetcar we can’t afford to build and haven’t a clue how to fund operating costs down the line, along with laying tracks for a $900 million light-rail line toward UNCC.
There’s a reason why governors in Florida, Wisconsin, and Ohio have recently turned down federal money for high-speed rail projects in those states: They’ve rightfully concluded that capital cost overruns and ongoing operating expenses would cripple state budgets.
Even the FTA is sending warning signals about the boondoggle potential of rail projects. This from TCO:
Last year, Peter Rogoff of the Federal Transit Administration said that rail systems nationwide had billions in deferred maintenance. He questioned whether the federal government should help cities financially to build new rail lines when those cities are struggling to maintain the rail lines they already have.
So naturally, in the wake of some fiscally responsible governors turning down federal rail loot, our governor and other local train tyrants are slobbering all over themselves, scrambling to pick up the coin.
Wonderful.
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