Debate Over Moving Train Tracks

KXXV-TV News 25 ^ | October 22, 2005 | KXXV-TV

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

They’re noisy and potentially dangerous, but extremely resourceful. And next month you can vote to move freight trains out of highly populated areas - but not everyone's on board.

Proposition One would eliminate a lot of that traffic by creating a completely new rail line through the rural part of the state. But along with the upsides to the new track have some potential negatives.

You wait for what seems like hours -hough some aren't that long at all. Still trains both large and small serve a valuable service - shipping goods to and from industries. And that's where the Director of the Waco Metropolitan Planning Organization Chris Evilia sees a potential problem with Proposition One. Some local businesses could be cut off from the new railway - so he's brainstorming solutions.

"The easiest method would be providing some sort of connection between the relocated rails and our urban areas," Evilia said. And folks living in those urban areas near railroad tracks wouldn't mind waking up to something other than this! "I can feel it in my bed shaking me. When it bumps so loud, it kind of shakes the bed." Iola Washington’s lived along the Union Pacific Rail Line in Beverly Hills for four years. She’s voting for Proposition One, to keep a few trains out of her neighborhood. "It’ll be fine because I’ll get a little more sleep."

But Proposition One also has some folks losing sleep because of its connection to a controversial massive state transportation project. "That’s one of the reasons some people are opposing this. It would basically allow the state to build the rail component of the trans-Texas corridor," Evilia said.

That's of course the half mile wide proposed corridor of highways, rail lines, and utility lines that has drawn a lot of both criticism and support in central Texas and throughout the state. And Proposition One has another potentially divisive aspect - it would allow the state to go into debt to finance the new railway - something that's never before been allowed for a transportation project.

Proposition One is on the ballot for November 8th. Early voting begins Monday.

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

Actually, the TTC was originally planned to be about 1200 feet wide, but is now projected to be 800 feet wide, with the exception of certain interchanges (thanks goes to Diddle E. Squat for that info). It could be even narrower where certain components are deemed unnecessary (passenger rail or car/truck separation, for example). If anybody hears different, just let me know...

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

Trans-Texas Corridor PING!

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the ping!

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

You're welcome. :-)

[E.G.C.]

BTTT

[dennisw]

The Spanish Highway to Mexico!

[Redbob]

The BIG problem with Prop #1 is that it raids the highway fund to "create" this fund to move railroad tracks.
We need the highway fund to, well, fund highways - and to do that only.

Prop #1 is primarily to benefit cities like El Paso which have suddenly decided they no longer want those nasty ol' railroad tracks all over the place.

[Redbob]

"I can feel it in my bed shaking me. When it bumps so loud, it kind of shakes the bed." Iola Washington’s lived along the Union Pacific Rail Line in Beverly Hills for four years."

So, Iola, can I assume that railroad track was already there when you moved into the neighborhood?
But you were just a little too thick to figure it out?

[Libertina]

Publius PING BTTT Cooper corridor!

[phatoldphart]

Good idea but railroads are regulated by the feds so it won't mean anything.

Trying to understand the TTC issue. I've read the site.

What are freepers objections to the TTC?
What is the alternative?

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

For Freeper comments for and against, try:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=transtexascorridor

and peruse some of the articles; some of the earlier ones have lots of comments.

[phatoldphart]

Thanks for the link. Haven't read many yet but so far I have:

Toll Road
Eminent Domain
Environment
Local Control
Cost
Spanish Company
Our Govenor's Hair

These correct?
Have I missed any?

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

Let's see:

• Tollways vs. Freeways
• Lack of economic development along toll roads
• Raising the gas tax (I'm part of the .00000000000000000000000000000000001 percent of the population who would support that at the state level if it would keep our highways "free").
• Improving interstate 35
• Interstate 69
• Rick Perry retires, works for Cintra-Zachry