SF Peninsula needs one track-BART in an effective, efficient rail transit plan...and a highway plan, too!

KCBS (SF 740AM) reports on April 4, 2012
Calif. State Senator Mark DeSaulnier, (no friend to automobility), proposes a Statewide Rail Plan:

Freemotorist comments:
Democrat DeSaulnier is on the right track.  If his rail plan ends the current Democrat "Rail Madness", (offshoot of "Reefer Madness") that Gov Jerry Brown, Democrat earmark-funded special interest MIT Exec Director Rod Diridon rail fanatic/advocate, and Honda, Boxer, & other Dems rail addiction-- especially in the S.F. Bay Area, then that is a good thing...in moderation, without new taxes, fees, or tolls against motorists.
Imagine, 3 heavy rail systems, the most heavily subsidized, most expensive transit, yet in the low ridership SF Peninsula Corridor ridership!  Only one rail system, regional BART, is needed up the Peninsula for its electric, GHG-reducing, no-congestion at-grade crossing, reduced suicides and accidents than Caltrain, higher farebox recovery, for a complete area seamless high-capacity rail transit that connects universities, shopping areas, event venues from AT&T park (soon to SJ's) HP Pavilion, Oakland Coliseum, airports, that will naturally attract riders from our roads.  BART will free up the Caltrain station land in the developing SF SOMA area,  allow removal of the Dumbarton Rail 1911 decaying bridge support towers, returning the wetland to its 1910 natural state (along with the salt ponds), and, induce whole-region ridership onto BART when its currently-planned terminus in Santa Clara is expanded to link up in Millbrae. This gap is only 28 miles and perfectly fundable wiith planned Caltrain upgrades and other funds, providing lots of local jobs for the next 15 years!  Electrifying, and taxing for Caltrain is only perfuming this deadly at-grade Pig Killtrain. HSR is built on fraud. HSR must have a federal and State DOJ racketeering fraud investigation because of all the orchestrated false numbers starting with the illegal 2008 ballot fraud.
California cannot afford to go the way of the 3 of 5 Europe PIIGS countries that HSR has driven to financial weakness and deprived citizens of needed basic government services--as is happening now in California, Parks, Animal Shelters, Adult, Child (incl Autism) Mental Health, Medical, schools, university students, teachers, and Professors, Fire and Police, as well as sacrificing other administrative union members jobs, especially in the HSR corridor communities.
We must stop California's unaffordable "Rail Madness".  I doubt DeSaulnier will do it, since he, like Simitian and other Dem's make a lot of noise, but don't take action. Democrats in the vertical monopoly of all levels in the San Francisco Bay Area governing bodies, they depend too much on rail-oriented corporate cronies, incestuous rail/density beneficiaries and (CAJ) union-extorted dues from desperate union members for their campaigns.
Say, how about a Build Highways plan once again?  Freemotorist has a long list of urgently-need alternative highway projects. These California's UnMet Highway Needs for safety, mobility, and, financial solvency actually pays for itself without tolls.  The under-appreciated motorist-derived, golden goose of automobility funds (including trucking) taxes, fees, fines, penalties, and range of other funds cornucopia, don't require subsidies.  Look around you. Automobility funds everything.

When Assy Leader Perez and the Democrats break out from their Building Trades/CAJ/SEIU Union-Body Snatched/brainless behavior and oppose unaffordable High Speed Rail in California to kill it, then we'll know that they are serious about this education, animal shelter welfare, health, public protection, and human services, parks funding--and saving other administrative/university,/teacher union jobs that are now being cut all over California.  If the rail-fetish nutcase, Gov. Moonbeam Jerry Brown, ever realizes that the so-called "futuristic" HSR (hah!) is a fraud, and not justified by "every other country has it" constant-replay of the mouthed recording-like pro-HSR false blather, then he will realize that HSR is really simply a replay of the 1969-futuristic "SST"--SuperSonicTransport passenger airplane, that US Congress refused to fund or guarantee loans, that other countries went ahead to build, but have now ALL either crashed or are safely in museums as  relics, then California can return to greatness and compete with real world smartness, not emotional, grandiose stupidity.
JB-this old man, has not adapted to the real, modern world--even yet--and we Californians hurt for it. Many BT/CAJ jobs can be had in other SoCal and NoCal construction jobs (i.e., BART up the Peninsula, Unmet Freeway Need widenings, Dams, water and other infrastructure work, etc) as well as avoiding the upcoming $2B/year General Fund depletion for bond service payments (at current low interest rates, wait until they rise!)--that ought to go to hire and pay other state and local (mostly union) workers.  Where are these union leaders?  Why aren't they fighting HSR vigorously, especially those dependent on state and local general funds?  Crazy that they haven't seen the light on this HSR ultimately job-killing wasteful, SST-like project.

BART around SF Bay, not HSR, only 28 miles to complete seamless B.A.R.T SF Bay loop!!!

I'm back!
BART should consider non-rail, or perhaps DMU to low-population Livermore.  BART needs to refocus to get the most benefit to BART, its existing and new riders, most farebox recovery, and most environmental (including human)benefits...that means finishing the last 28 miles from the now-funded BART extension into Santa Clara up to Millbrae+SFO, the gap remaining around the Bay...hello, B.A.R.T.!  Using funds to from ending the Caltrain Killtrain (178 dead since 1995, 16 slaughtered on its tracks last year, 2 already this year) up the Peninsula ($120M/yr), redirecting Dumbarton Rail funds to BART (since BART will cover all DB Rail cities--cleaner, greener, and safer) ($1B build, xx to operate/yr), and tear down the ugly, decaying DB rail pylons to return the southern SF Bay to its pre-1910 natural state.
And, Bay Area Democrats (the bay area monopoly party) should ask Congressmen Denham, Nunes, McCarthy to amend their HR761 bill which allows the option to redirect Federal HSR funds to SR to apportion some $B of HSR$ to closing this BART gap.  Yes!
Unify SF Bay Area heavy rail service under one high-capacity transit backbone system, with more frequent, safe, electric, system. BART  is scheduled to be largely in Santa Clara by 2018.  Think of it...10-15 years of full-time, high-paying, local CAJ/BT/Rebulid CA and other construction, union and related JOBS, while providing real Berkeley-SF-Stanford-SJ -Fremont-Oakland seamless mass transit!

Save the Federal Budget. Taxes for People not luxury HSR, No tolls. Where are the hurt Unions to stop HSR?

Kill all High Speed Rail projects now before they start -else all those who depend on federal, and especially California, taxes, especially the most vulnerable will suffer. They already are in California-GM (like pre-bankruptcy GM fat union largesse).  The US is not Europe with its medieval land use, nor Asia with poor roads and very expensive intra-country airtravel.  In China, where HSR is being deployed, most intercity travel is by regular rail and bus, not like the advanced US (Interstate Hwys) road and air systems. THe last time the US was like China intercity travel was in the 1920's. NO WONDER HSR works there. Also, Beware, everywhere that HSR is, it requires corruption-inducing "Public Private Partnerships", in transportation, that means toll roads...in every country. Same in California the tax, fee, fine, charge and now Toll-road Democrats can't keep their fingers our of our pockets with these wasteful boondoggles that will push us into more debt to low-cost China HSR makers (from stolen IP HSR technology from their initial European and Japanese HSR runs), and higher defiicits.  The California HSR board is made up of termed out, mostly Democrat, former legislators and their former staffs. They lie, misrepresent, overstate, and are not held accountable in the coming California bankruptcy.  And, yet the Calif is so union-run, that even the police, fire, administrating, unions don't raise a voice to stop HSR that is literally costing their members jobs. Only the Building Trades, Transit Union, and Laborers Unions will benefit from the increases taxes and tolls of this unnecessary HSR corporate cronyism (from the ballot campaign contributions) . These unions can be put to work on real projects that build America, not China or France or German interests.
Where is the SEIU, AFSCME, Nurses, and Teachers and University unions and all of us who depend on good roads? Why aren't their members fighting to stop HSR's bleeding of our taxes--and to save their jobs.  Their govt funds will be diverted  to HSR as it is in the 5 PIIGS Europe countries, not coincidentally, 3 of which have HSR...HELLO?! 

See Yahoo's Reuters article on Portugal's finances, today 3-23-11: Reuters, "Portugal government may collapse before EU Summit." http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Portugal-government-may-rb-526541639.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=2&asset=&ccode=
Remember, the other PIIGS that HSR has driven to debt, poor credit, and no lasting jobs (HSR to taxpayers and Democrat-pushers, is like black tar heroin to an addict). Portugal has the same credit rating as California, with the same high interest rate to compensate for the state's lousy debt rating that taxpayers must pay.

Japan's HSR has also created a terrible debt, 228% of its own GDP! And, they lost 4 HSR trains and passengers that could not stop fast enough to prevent their loss after the recent 9.0 earthquake. T

he Feds, Republicans, and Congress MUST delete all HSR $ from the budget, especially to save the low-density California.  Taxes/fees etc are for people needs, especially the most vulnerable among us, not for the elitists to use tax-funded luxury rail limousine service.

Let private companies fund it. if they can--they can't, just as the aircraft manufacturers couldn't with the 1969 SST (Concorde) that Congress refused to fund, then, so too, should Congress reject this.  And, NO TOLL ROADS to fund it. Despite Obama's continuing efforts to make us a third world country, this, too, must be stopped. It won't work in the US as it does in some third world countries.  KILL HSR NOW to save the budget, to save our mobility, to save low-cost driving without new toll roads (PPP), and to help reduce more foreign debt--especially to China which is already the largest foreign holder of US debt--dangerous for our security, US ownership of companies,  and defense.

Today's (03-10-2011) downgrade of Spain's credit rating by Moody's should not be a surprise, not only because of its Socialist government, unionist spending and 21% unemployment, but because 3 of the 5 credit-risky Europe PIIGS country's, including Spain, have heavily subsidized High Speed Rail (HSR) boondoggle waste. Worse, Japan, also recently downgraded by S&P because its debt exceeds its GDP by a factor of 2 has an extensive HSR network and its economy, too, is in the doldrums.  The Japanese expanded HSR during the past few years further in a failed effort to "put people to work"--just like Spain.  HSR won't work in the US.
 Japanese and Europe HSR manufacturers have also learned that the HSR technology they passed to China in building China's first HSR systems, has been enhanced and turned against them in current bidding. China is lowest cost bidder, of course.  The HSR danger for US misguided (union) "supporters" who are motorists is that this Third-World transport method is so heavily subsidized that nearby toll roads are required--and more to support them.  This is true in Europe, Asia, and soon Latin America. I believe this is the plan in the US with cagey words in the draft 6-year transportation re-authorization bill of so-called Public Private Partnerships(PPP) and pushed by reduction in VMT--else it will cost us more to drive. In nearly-bankrupt California, Democrat/Public Union/Enviros are quietly planning, and meeting, to install and convert lanes, and to make freeways into toll roads starting on at least 4 routes near HSR (SR 152, US101, and more to come), firstly to increase the cost of driving--to inhibit VMT, raise revenue for their anti-freeway pro-expensive, subsidized, tax-toll-fee-fine funded HSR agenda, and, by squeezing parallel road use in an effort to force HSR ridership.  The tax-toll cost to guarentee PPP's toll road revenue, for the companies that build or own them, from motorists would jump from the current .04cents per mile up to $1.00 (So Cal SR91, soon I-15, and others).  Democrats salivate! More wasteful pet projects to generate slave union labor, more $$ for HSR, more debt, more campaign contributions by rail and consultant vendors. .
Congress MUST KILL Any and All funding for HSR or new Toll Roads will come.  Toll Roads, are not in the Interstate heritage of simple, fuel-funded built-in fair taxation--dedicated mostly for roads, the revenue source, to help the middle class get and keep jobs and income...not take away more income.  
In 1969, Congress killed US government  funding of the SST (SuperSonic Transport--aka the late Concorde, Russia's late TU-144)  when US aricraft manufacturers would not fund it themselves as not viable. 
HSR is not viable in the US.
HSR presents a clear and present danger to motorists rights, wallets, and the closed-loop principle that those who pay for roads benefit from them.  Roads are self-funded,  economic growth engines (as noted in AHUA's great website, http://www.highways.org/).  Motorists should  not be sources of alternative taxation for wasteful projects by uncontrolled, unvoted tolling, fees, fines, penalties, excise and sales taxes, etc. peddled by termed-out former legislators looking for another way to pick taxpayer/motorist pockets for their own benefit.

Please ask  our Congressman not to fund any HSR.  HSR is like black tar heroin to politicians desperate to take our hard earned money. HSR will drive the US  into worse deficits--and more debt with China if/when China wins HSR contracts.  Motorists must not let this HSR 'Camel in the tent".  There will be no end to it. As we are seeing in California already.
Not a dime for HSR or Toll Roads. Motorists pay more than enough already for our roads.

Congress 2011 Budget: Congress: Kill High Speed Rail now, before it starts.

Posted CNN Money article on the Obama 2011 Budget mispriorities.

Congress MUST Kill High Speed Rail now, before it starts. Stop this insidious nationalized rail expansion.  This is a Third World tax-funded rail limo service that this country does not need nor can it afford with so many needy people, public safety, health and welfare priorities, as others commented here. HSR extends nationalized high-cost unionized, high cost penjsion rail. HSR will require PPP (Public Private Partnership) euphemism for conversion of our highways to Toll Roads to fund this gross monster and fascist (govt+company) ripoffs of users.  Today, roads cost about .04 per mile.  Toll Lanes and roads cost up to $1.00 per mile. Shame.  This under a fake (unregulated, unaccounted-for) environmental lie.   HSR is like black tar heroin to an addict in the eyes of taxpayers. it provides jobs in only one shot only, but costs ever increasing more.  Japan's heralded trains helped drive its debt to twice that of its GDP--and its lagging economy.  3 of the 5 Europe PIIGS countries have hgih-cost HSR, including Spain with its 21% unemployment.  No wonder.  Kill all HSR funding--including California, to save California's budget and preserve money. The 2008 Calif vote was unconsitutional with pro-advocacy language locked in by law with no legal way to change. It is under a HJTA Taxpayer's lawsuit to negate...and voters were distracted by Prop 8 (Gay Marriage).  Watch english.cctv.com to see news direct from Bejing to see how feeble China's transportation systems is: This Spring Festival travel volume (a fraction of US) was primarily by bus and regular railway. HSR helps them, but can cost a full month salary. HSR thrives in countries with strong centrally-planned (rightly or wrongly) countries.  The US champions individualism, not communism.  When was the last time US holiday travel was primarily by bus and Train...1930's.  If any Europe or Japan HSR vendors expect to get contracts in the US, over China's low-cost HSR exports, they are wrong. They gave China technology when they sold them HSR. Google for the article about this.  No US jobs.   The tragedy of Obama is that he lives in a third world mental state. He is reining in the US to become third world. His SofU and Budget reflect this unfortunate headset.  HSR is like the futuristic "SST" (ill-fated Concorde) which Congress rejected to fund in 1969 when private companies could not make the economics work. SST was supposed to be the future of air travel.  Congress must reject the horror of the HSR fraud.  The Voters must reject this third world regressive, destructive shame of a President in 2012. We need taxes for People, not 3rd world pride-only "glamour" projects.  For infrastructure, Roosevelt was right...build roads, not rail, help US people, not foreign firms.

Dateline: Comment in "The American Conservative" about infamous, subsidized Streetcar resurrections

As usual, such transit activists and city or other local government spendthrifts never mention the redistribution funding that Streetcars, whether the provincial, backwards,dangerous, inefficient, inflexible, expensive cost per rider, or LRT, require.  Source: The American Conservative article "Corridors of Crap", by William S Lind "Keep America Moving" block,  about a southern city mayor proselytizing on bringing back 19th-20th century streetcars as if this is some kind of downtown panacea. B.S.! It is just a quest for more money from others to special interests, including foreign manufacturers and unions., to tie up downtown traffic and further prevent downtown adaptability to current and future needs.  They are another grab to waste Redevelopment funds, create more crushing debt, and/or steal more from motorists by another of an endless stream of liberal, spend, spend, spend fantasies.  Streetcars are outdated now. 

Please, get with the program. With 40% of the federal budget on borrowed money, a public debt at $14B and worsening under the Marxist Obama (in action, but not words), then a cornerstone of American prosperity is its automobility. Automobility is in whatever and whenever, free choice, un-tolled, un-subsidized, un-congestion priced, vehicle the free American chooses to drive–and pay for with his or her funds, not someone else’s that is taken by force of law. if streetcars pay for themselves–Directly!, then they fit, otherwise, keep them in the metal scrapyard and sell the relics back to Japan or Europe manufacturers for scrap value. The only way these outdated, early 20th Century vehicles can be funded is by more taxes and fees from desperate local, state, or Federal general funds and, of course, socking the motorist with more fees, taxes, tolls, unlimited congestion pricing, fines, penalties, parking charges and anti-motorist hits.
This site can’t possibly be truly Conservative, only regressive or reactionary. There is a huge difference from appreciating the past in reality and looking forward according to tightly-adhered to US Constitutional principles.

This is just another reason why politicians and public trough eaters need to have a real job to keep in touch with reality. All political jobs should be part-time, and part-time pay, if at all.  The citizen politician

The Washington Muckrakers, Jack Anderson used to write" Only Politics Could Repeal Reality". Amen.
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Regards,