(no subject)
March 27, 2006
Brendan Kiefer
TCU Box 290430
Fort Worth, Texas 76129
Dear Brendan:
Thank you for writing me about your thoughts on
improving passenger transportation in and around our state. I
appreciate your creativity and ideas. That's the spirit of American
progress put into practice.
As you may know, the Federal Railroad Administration
(FRA) has identified ten corridors around the United States where
high-speed rail service could take place. You will be interested to
know that many of the cities you identified in your letter are
included in the FRA's "South Central Corridor." This Corridor,
which bears a shape of a wishbone, begins in San Antonio and
continues northward through Austin, splitting into two lines in Fort
Worth toward both Okalahoma and Arkansas. For a visual
reference and a more in-depth study, you may wish to visit the
FRA's website, http://www.fra.dot.gov/us/content/203.
With the identification of the South Central Corridor, the
question now becomes, "Who pays for it?" I serve on the House
Appropriations Committee, which funds passenger rail ventures
such as Amtrak throughout the United States. My greatest concern
for increasing passenger rail routes are the overwhelming subsidies
the government must provide to cover passenger rail capital costs.
In Japan, only a few lines are able to cover their expenses without
subsidies by the government. In Germany, the rail markets have
evolved into complete state-operated entities with companies
dedicated to managing different aspects of rail service, such as
freight lines, maintenance and security upgrades, and passenger
lines.
Previous models for passenger rail service have explored
other funding options through a variety of sources: partnerships
between the public-private sector, state investment through tax
dollars, and local cities along the proposed line formulating action
plans for making the rail profitable for the cities. Texas would
need to closely examine these options in order to determine if
passenger rail is the most fiscally responsible investment to answer
our state's transportation needs.
Again, thanks for contacting me about this issue. Please
continue to keep me informed
on the issues which are important to you. For more information on
my work in Congress, or to sign up to receive my e-newsletter,
please visit the 12th District's web site,
http://kaygranger.house.gov.
Congresswoman Kay Granger
Member of Congress
Brendan Kiefer
TCU Box 290430
Fort Worth, Texas 76129
Dear Brendan:
Thank you for writing me about your thoughts on
improving passenger transportation in and around our state. I
appreciate your creativity and ideas. That's the spirit of American
progress put into practice.
As you may know, the Federal Railroad Administration
(FRA) has identified ten corridors around the United States where
high-speed rail service could take place. You will be interested to
know that many of the cities you identified in your letter are
included in the FRA's "South Central Corridor." This Corridor,
which bears a shape of a wishbone, begins in San Antonio and
continues northward through Austin, splitting into two lines in Fort
Worth toward both Okalahoma and Arkansas. For a visual
reference and a more in-depth study, you may wish to visit the
FRA's website, http://www.fra.dot.gov/us/content/203.
With the identification of the South Central Corridor, the
question now becomes, "Who pays for it?" I serve on the House
Appropriations Committee, which funds passenger rail ventures
such as Amtrak throughout the United States. My greatest concern
for increasing passenger rail routes are the overwhelming subsidies
the government must provide to cover passenger rail capital costs.
In Japan, only a few lines are able to cover their expenses without
subsidies by the government. In Germany, the rail markets have
evolved into complete state-operated entities with companies
dedicated to managing different aspects of rail service, such as
freight lines, maintenance and security upgrades, and passenger
lines.
Previous models for passenger rail service have explored
other funding options through a variety of sources: partnerships
between the public-private sector, state investment through tax
dollars, and local cities along the proposed line formulating action
plans for making the rail profitable for the cities. Texas would
need to closely examine these options in order to determine if
passenger rail is the most fiscally responsible investment to answer
our state's transportation needs.
Again, thanks for contacting me about this issue. Please
continue to keep me informed
on the issues which are important to you. For more information on
my work in Congress, or to sign up to receive my e-newsletter,
please visit the 12th District's web site,
http://kaygranger.house.gov.
Congresswoman Kay Granger
Member of Congress