Special session on rail tentatively set for Dec. 3
by Dara Kam | November 25th, 2009A special session on rail issues is likely to begin in the first week of December.
Senate President Jeff Atwater and House Speaker Larry Cretul will likely call the special session “in the next few days,” according to a memos Atwater and Cretul sent to their members today.
The leaders told lawmakers to clear their schedules for Dec. 3 through Dec. 10 and that work would be completed before Hannukah begins on Dec. 11. The special session would coincide with the committee week already slated for Dec. 7.
Gov. Charlie Crist has pushed for the special session this year to take advantage of federal transportation money for state rail projects.
Lawmakers risk losing out on the funds if they wait until the regular session convenes in March to address the issues.
That special session would give them a third chance at reaching a deal on a proposed Central Florida commuter rail sytem, SunRail, and a financial fix for the flailing Tri-Rail commuter system.
Tags: Atwater, Cretul, special session
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November 25th, 2009 at 7:09 pm
Well I see that Jeff the RINO is once again spending taxpayer money for the betterment of his friends. If such a venture was profitable some private company would have done it long ago.
Maybe it is time we flushed out Jeff Atwater with his good buddie Charlie Crist.
November 25th, 2009 at 7:51 pm
Did anyone see Atwater’s memo on the Special Session? I thought he was a Republican?
Hard to tell the Republicans from the Democrats these days.
Perhaps it’s time for people to check out the Libertarian Party. We would not be voting or supporting a multi-billion dollar project funded with taxpayer money (or borrowed taxpayer obligations) that will continually lose hundreds of millions each and every year.
Tri-Rail currently costs the taxpayers over $100 per rider, per round trip. Why would anyone support such a huge subsidy. May as well buy all the riders a Prius and one year’s worth of gas and be done with it.
November 25th, 2009 at 9:15 pm
Against funding mass transit, but not against billions upon billions for road widening? It is NOT FEASIBLE to have only roads as a transportation option. Kudos to our State Government realizing the importance of mass transit to bring us into the 21st century. I guess another option would be to continue to widen our roads until all our land is paved for new lanes.
November 25th, 2009 at 11:15 pm
We’ve already accepted millions of federal dollars that we will have to pay back if we don’t act quickly. We need mass transit - we should be looking at places like Atlanta and their MARTA system for examples of how to set up and run an excellent mass transit system, then incorporate those ideas into our exsisting systems, like Tri-Rail. We will not be able to widen our roads enough to handle all the projected traffic. We need to do something now, while we can get federal assistance to do so.
November 26th, 2009 at 6:34 am
$100 per rider per round trip? Put up the numbers to support your assertion, sir. Every economically-viable metro area has an efficient public transit system, except SoFla. And just about every one is subsidized. A $2 rental car tax is not going to hurt anyone.
November 26th, 2009 at 7:46 am
Straight Facts,
Coming up with that number is easy math: just add the total TriRail Operating and Capital Budgets together ($218 million) and divide by the number of annual boardings (4.23 million), reduce that figure by total fares collected from the riders and that comes out to over $100 per round-trip ride.
It’s not rocket science. So, you are will to expend $100 each time someone jumps on the train and back? And keep in mind, that number will only increase with this new tax and the new stimulus money coming in from taxpayers nationally.
Seriously, if the Tri-Rail hasn’t been able to prove its viability at this juncture it’s time to sell it all off and cut our losses.
Again, I love the IDEA of Tri-Rail, it just doesn’t work here in South Florida. I sat in on a focus group earlier this year and even the regular riders of Tri-Rail had a huge list of complaints and why the system was so terrible - and those were supposed advocates for the system!
A $2 per day car rental tax on top of all the other “bed” taxes paid by both Floridians AND tourists does hurt people.
November 26th, 2009 at 8:28 am
1. I think it is obscene the way state governments are stampeding to snatch federal money. (a) Obama has said, accurately, that there is no money. If the Congress gives somebody a handout, that money has to come from somebodies–tax payers and their offspring.
2. The bullet-train concept is wrong. Trains have to run on a schedule. What should be done is mount fleet of small planes at key points. Floridians could go WHENEVER THEY WANT TO DEPART and have a plane take them to their destination. Much more flexible than a train.
November 26th, 2009 at 8:54 am
Though I do not believe that federal stimulus money is the answer for our economy and that most money doled out goes to pet projects of favored constituents,I would rather see the federal stimulus money spent on commuter trains that are available for any rider than: Boca Raton Airport (rec’d a hefty sum) or the FLORIDA TURNPIKE (private COMPANY) that is seeking more than $280 million just for South Florida. This includes the PALMETTO PARK ROAD AND BOCA RIO ROAD PROJECTS. This project only builds the interchange and destroys the neighborhoods. Palm Beach MPO will have to widen Palmetto Park Road to 10 lanes and the MPO has no budget. Comment to:Imran.ghani@dot.state.fl.us. Comment by Jan 26, 2010. Beware of the growth. Better to build a rail line than destroy neighborhoods, canals and swales.
November 26th, 2009 at 10:30 am
Why do you think Buffet bought a railroad…it’s the land underneath those tracks.
We will be paying for this for years along with the digital highway.
Empty your pockets..especially the next couple of generations.
Vote for fiscal conservatives.
November 26th, 2009 at 1:10 pm
They better hope they haven’t chosen a religious day and have to change the meeting like Charlie Crist did for voting. See more at SomebodyShouldAsk.com