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The Jax Files: With Tom Jackson in Pasco
Pasco County News | Breaking News

Wall Street Journal: Scott correct on high-speed choo-choo

Posted Feb 18, 2011 by Tom Jackson

Updated Feb 18, 2011 at 11:20 AM

While others wring their hands, rend their garments and plot alternate routes for hanging billions in long-term debt on Florida taxpayers in exchange for short-term political gain, we are pleased to direct your attention to the sober-minded grownups in the room—more specifically, the Wall Street Journal editorial board room.

In an editorial published Friday (“Florida Railroad Check”), the Journal salutes Gov. Rick Scott for declining the $2.4 billion dangled by Washington for a high-speed rail connection between Tampa and Orlando, advertised as the first link of a statewide network that would next include Miami. Promoters say after the federal seed money is in place, private industry would step up to build, maintain and operate the project. Without further taxpayer subsidies? History reports otherwise.

Says the Journal, “Florida Governor Rick Scott avoided a costly train wreck ... by hitting the brakes on his state’s high-speed rail project.”  Furthermore:

Mr. Scott rejected $2.4 billion of federal money for an 84-mile line from Tampa to Orlando, saying that it would likely end up costing state taxpayers an additional $3 billion when the state’s budget deficit this year is $3.6 billion. Then there’s the half a billion dollars in operating subsidies that the train would need every decade, which could be more depending on how much the state has inflated ridership projections.

The state has estimated that about 2.4 million people would take the train in its first year, which is about two-thirds of the ridership for Amtrak’s Acela, which travels along a far more populated urban corridor. Call us skeptics, but we think most people would prefer to drive from Tampa to Orlando. It’s cheaper and only takes half an hour longer.

State Sen. Mike Fasano (R-New Port Richey) rightly notes that when it comes to transportation dollars, Florida is and has for the longest time been a donor state.  He is right to petition Washington to give back what is ours.  Of course, that opens a whole new federalism argument, which is a subject for another day.  What Fasano fails to mention, however, is the blackmail quality of the feds’ dangled carrot.  Spend your money as we see fit, says the Obama administration through Transportation Secretary Ray “Toyotas are Killing Machines” LaHood—there’s a reliable source for you—or we’re giving Florida’s money to someone else more cooperative.  Says the Journal: 

Rather than allowing Florida to redirect the money to more productive and cost-effective projects like highways and ports, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood plans to redirect Florida’s rail money to other states. When new governors in Ohio and Wisconsin killed their rail projects late last year, California scooped up more than half of the cash. New York, California and Washington state have all lined up for a share of Florida’s leftovers.

This means taxpayers in fiscally prudent states like Florida could end up having to subsidize these and other states’ reckless projects. Or maybe not. House Republicans in Washington are already proposing to cut Mr. Obama’s high-speed rail request by billions of dollars. The Senate will try to keep irrational hope alive, but more Governors would be wise to follow Mr. Scott and cut their inevitable railroad losses.

There ought to be handwringing, all right.  But not about Scott blocking the Obama Boondoggle Express.

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