California bullet trains might go somewhere, someday
A piece in the Examiner today talks about several possible alternate routes for bullet trains through the Bay Area. They might go by Modesto, they might go by Gilroy. They might go past places you’ve never heard of, called Shinn and Greenville. They might even go in a tube across the bay.
Or nothing might happen at all.
Gov. Arnold Schwartzenegger earlier this month practically eliminated the budget for the project, moving High Speed Rail Authority Executive Director Mehdi Morshed to lament:
The project is for all practical purposes dead. We might as well close shop. Having our office open serves no public purpose.
Strangely, there was no mention of this problem in the Examiner story, which is full of glowing images of sub $50 tickets to go from SF to LA and trains whizzing at over 300 mph.
The map accompanying the article in the Examiner was unreadable. The online illustration in their story is slightly better. You can click the picture above for a blowup. But the real map is here in PDF format on the CA High Speed Rail Authority website.
I have the feeling Schw. is out of step on this issue. Even San Joachin Valley Republicans want the train, as shown in this Fresno Bee story from last week about local officials arguing for a station to be built in the Visalia area, saying that “Tulare-Kings will have a population of 1 million by 2030 and deserves a station.” (What is “Tulare-Kings”? The name of two counties in the Valley, as shown by the popup map linked from that Fresno Bee story.)
We need a bullet train. It needs to go through San Francisco. We need to have alternatives to driving.
We need a bullet train. It needs to go through San Francisco. We need to have alternatives to driving.
A group of us have been getting together monthly to plan on getting the word out to get this thing on the ballot (after 4+ years of delays) in November ’08. Those who are interested in participating can visit our (temporary but working) website: http://www.buildthebullet.com
If it gets on the ballot, it will pass, easily.
The Bullet Train needs help to survive. With the acceptance of Global Warming, particularly by ALL the Presidential Candidates that will be here in February, 2008, all the diesel trucks may see “the end of the road.”
The Bullet Train should bite the bullet and resist the enticements of truckers and partisans and present itself as the best hope to fight Global Warming by replacing most truck traffic.
The savings from trying to enlarge Highways 5 and 99 would help build the Bullet Train.
There is no reason cargo and passenger cars could not share the same lines. Both should travel at the same speed in the same, one-directional, track. It could be done if the Bullet People decide to include cargo in their plans.
Perhaps, they have something against cargo?
it looks like shinn is somewhere in fremont, judging from the dot’s location. the only shinn i know of in fremont is the shinn house, nearby the niles area. not sure where they might build the station, if that’s really a proposed site.
…that would be San “Joaquin” Valley…