The Benefits of the Proposed California High Speed Rail

I have lived in California for the entirety of my life. While widely known for its beauty, California is much more locally known for its twisty, turny roads that traverse mountains, the pacific coast, hills, valleys, deserts, and forests. Surrounded by this environment has allowed me to develop a passion for travel and nature which has inspired me to work toward further developing and restructuring modern transportation methods such as trains, buses, bridges, and roadways. I believe that I can contribute to a future where faster travel allows people to spend more time interacting face-to-face and I plan to effect this change by pursuing a career in civil engineering and rallying for better environmental protection programs while educating myself

On the other hand, the Sydney Light Rail brings some disadvantages to society and the environment. The construction has caused many local businesses to close due to the interruption caused by blocked roads affecting access and parking, thereby losing customers resulting in a decline in sales. In Appendix 3, David said the Bourke Street Bakery has ‘suffered a considerable loss of customers’, and others such as Book Kitchen in Surry Hills have closed. The light rail has evidently affected residents and businesses, however in Sydney Olympic Park, following the development, the longer term benefit means businesses are now positively impacted by extra customers and more residents. Many individuals and businesses have moved due to the disruption of construction, noise and blocked roads, causing more traffic and congestion, seen in I.6.

Proposition 35 simply gives state and local government the flexibility to use private sector engineers and architects to complete long overdue highway, rail transit and other projects sooner, safely, and at $2.5 billion savings to taxpayers. Supporters of Proposition 35 highlight a few important points, including thousands of overdue highway and rail transit projects that must be completed to alleviate traffic and prepare us for the next quake. In order to complete these thousands of projects both Caltrans and private sector engineers and architects are needed to complete those projects. However, Caltrans bureaucrats stand in the way of accomplishing this by severely restricting government's ability to contract with the private sector. Proposition 35 is the answer to these problems. Proposition 35 is

The idea of advancing an economy has been a staple in political ideology since the dawn of democracy and politics itself. We as citizens of California are becoming global leaders in climate consciousness, and our efforts are involved in the advancement of eco-friendly systems, in this case, an eco-friendly mode of transportation that will theoretically increase the convenience of interstate travel as well as boost an economy that is already ranked the 8th most prosperous economy in the world. On both ends of the spectrum, both pro and con proponents of high-speed rail travel in California agree that the economic advancement of California is our best

While the Federal-Aid Highway act of 1956 created the U.S. Interstate system and brought a nation together, the Federal-Aid Highway act of 1973 would later create division in federal and state political parties over future funding concerns. In the short run, President Nixon considered this act as a positive step for transportation and the economy. However, in the long run, this act led to the eroding of HTF’s, leaving both state and federal government debating over how to proceed in funding a transportation infrastructure that is at present time slowly crumbling. Political differences between federal and state agencies have brought the modernization process of the transportation infrastructure to a snail’s pace. In addition, the lengthy

Despite the tremendous economic success in Texas and its overall well-being, the state continues to face its nonstandard set of challenges that must be addressed immediately. Certainly, the most pressing issue is a deteriorating transportation infrastructure, which requires innovation, long-range planning and, of course, investment (Button & Reggiani, 2011). The following study focuses on the deteriorating transportation infrastructure as a major issue facing the state of Texas. The report will also discuss the positions of two major Texas political parties (Republican and Democratic) on the issue. It further explains the ways of their addressing it. Next, it will discuss the overall goals, the position, the level of lobbying and the

In order to create realistic solutions, it is essential to see how Californians have funded infrastructure projects in the past. Before California became the populous state it is today; not much infrastructure was built because the demand was not set in place. As more people moved to California as a result of the California Gold Rush, roads were cleared to make commutes easier. Property tax mostly funded these projects. It was not until the creation of the 1909 State Highway Act that significant infrastructure was established which included a 34-route 3,000-mile system. Although this highway act lead to a substantial creation of highway infrastructure, “initial estimates proved inadequate, and the state required additional highway bond measures

Comparing the financial cost of the interstate with the cost of having to reallocate funding or stopping programs in an effort to decrease traffic congestion will create a greater economic downturn if not done in moderation as well as a decrease in confidence in lawmakers. The lawmakers will feel the decrease in confidence by citizens during elections. Unless the local government can generate and use other sources of revenue to continue highway improvement, the decision to remove the city’s funding is not practical.

The money goes towards building an efficient mass transit system that gives about 4 million rides a day, and it makes car buyers think twice before purchasing a vehicle that is going to cost them a fortune (Source B). Although the idea of using the money to build a mass transit system seems controversial to reducing air pollution, mass transportation, such as Singapore’s, actually emits about 62 percent less pollution per passenger mile compared to a single operating vehicle, according to the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). If the U.S. government were to carry out a policy similar to this, the amount of pollution emitted by roadside transportation would drastically decrease due to the limited access of cheap vehicles and unlimited access of mass transportation.(does this work?). The positive effects of green policies have already been seen in the U.S. through the Clean Air Acts of 1970 and 1990, which were set to control pollution and are upheld by the EPA and the White House Administration, . This act

A. Donald Man and William Mackenzie bought up land in the West, and by 1901, they had enough land to qualify for federal assistance in building a railway. The Canadian Northern Railway was born as a rival to the Canadian Pacific Railway.

In an effort to promote safe areas for bicyclists and fitness, there has been a movement to revitalize abandoned rail lines into rail trails. Pennsylvania has a deep history of railroading and these historic lines provide excellent opportunities for development of trails.

specified in Proposition 1A. However, as time passes, the initial estimate is beginning to look like a low-ball. The construction process has taken longer than expected up until this point, and that has many direct and indirect costs associated. Some of these include increased number of work hours, job site utilities, and equipment rentals (Cox). Because of this increase in price, the state of California has tried to match federal funding with private investors. This, however, has been a slow and uncertain process. Another overestimation on the side of the CAHSR is in train times. Cox argues that the CHSRA’s anticipated average speeds are not being achieved anywhere in the world, even on the most advanced lines. He also states that “ the HSR would be unattractive to drivers in middle-distance automobile markets because little or no door-to-door time savings would be achieved and costly local connections would often be required (rental cars or taxicabs).” California lacks the extensive local transit infrastructure in the Central Valley that can be found in dense Asian and European areas; these smaller connecting systems are what make the high-speed rail so effective on other continents. Without them, it is a lengthier process for consumers to get to their end destination – they have to use both the public transit and their own form of transportation. This could have a negative effect on ridership because consumers will forego the hassle of changing transportation methods and

The difference in the share of railways in the USA and the EU is due to the geographical distances between cities in the USA and the EU. Railways cost less to operate and have fewer emissions when compared to trucking. Yet, the use of railways is limited for the following reasons: (i) building its infrastructure is very costly; (ii) the long lead time required for developing the infrastructure; (iii) consistent-high-volume of the freight traffic is needed for economic viability; and (iv) the need for trucks for the distribution to the final destinations. Trucks have many advantages over other modes of transportation, especially that they provide last mile delivery. Trucks, as compared to railways, ships, or planes have the most flexibility in reaching a destination, and the upfront

A Case Study on the California High Speed Rail System (CAHSR) - Is It Feasible?

Passenger and freight transportation systems have a number of similarities in the investment evaluation process, with a few significant differences. The table below offers an initial look at the stakeholders for each and their relative financial interests.