High Speed Rail - What Does It Really Mean for Communities?

Ok – so I don’t want to be “downer Debbie” on the topic of High Speed Rail (HSR), but I have my concerns. High Speed Rail – the $8 billion buzz term of the year, is likely to be coming to a town near you. The idea is at first great. We upgrade existing rail, add connections, stations and near passenger trains to our system to the benefit of those seeking regional train travel. But what do you do when you arrive in St. Louis? Indianapolis? Cincinnati? Getting to any of these destinations by comfortable, speedy and affordable transit is wonderful, but my concern comes in the idea of getting around once you are there.

Sure, Chicago has a good transit system and is very walkable once a traveler arrives at Union Station. But what about those other cities? Sure they are nice cities but walking and transit aren’t really serious options. I admit that I don’t know the HSR spending proposals inside and out, but I do know that little has been said about the completeness of these plans. What seems to be missing is a complete plan for transit options at train stations and a general interest in the cities these trains will travel to. For example, Cincinnati, a city continuously challenged by urban decay, transit failures and overall disinvestment (with a few exceptions), has a beautiful, historic train station located just outside of the downtown area. The challenge is bifold. Decades ago, this underutilized train station (Amtrak operates very few trains through this station and the Amtrak entrance is at the lower level), was converted to a museum center. Additionally, getting to and from this station is particularly challenging since it is not centrally located downtown and few transit options are available. If car rental options are available, I’m not aware of them.
And what about freight operations? For high speed rail to succeed, passenger trains must assume right-of-way, unlike the current arrangement in most of the US. This means that through an agreement, freight trains will either yield to passenger rail or set certain times for freight usage. I wonder what the impact on the freight industry will be. Since we are in economic downtown, freight rail numbers are lower than peak economy. So when things turn around and freight rail hits its max again, will there be room for both passenger and freight rail trains on our limited rail system.
This certainly makes me wonder if HSR has moved too hastily. Many cities aren’t really ready for it and the rail industry may not be either. I would love to have a complete regional rail system in the US as much as the next planner, but I want to hear more about the options, the realities and the extended plans to accommodate this system. I commend the Obama Administration for putting the money into the HSR idea, but I hope it’s not just a giant waste of money. It’s up to the cities and regions to make HSR work best for them, but nearly every city can barely keep the city operating in these times.

What is the future of HSR and out communities? I’m not sure and I can’t just blindly support the HSR initiatives. There are so many wants and needs for cities today and I’m not sure if our priorities are set correctly. I would love to see the money go toward improved local transit, infrastructure improvements and community improvements.
For more information on HSR, visit: www.fra.dot.gov