NV: Governor (Gibbons) praises meeting with Obama (will work w/aRnie to build Mag-Lev from LV to LA)

AP on Yahoo ^ | 12/2/08 | AP

[NormsRevenge]

Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons said President-elect Barack Obama's meeting Tuesday with many of the nation's governors was "productive and helpful," and he was encouraged by Obama's promise to push an economic stimulus package.

--snip--

Gibbons also said that while in Philadelphia for the meeting with Obama he got an agreement from California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to work on a joint effort with both states' congressional delegations to push construction of a high-speed, mag-lev train between Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

[hinckley buzzard]

Now there's some infrastructure we really need. Specially targeted at those who can't lose their money fast enough as it is.

[NormsRevenge]

I hope they have windows that open on that thing so folks can just throw their money out the window after they win big... or if they always lose anyway, it could at least do someone besides the casinos some good. :-)

[umgud]

Went to Reno recently to visit dad. I usually stop at Boomtown to gamble a little om the way out. Was in a hurry last trip so I just went up to the change clerk and handed her $200. She asked why. Itold her I was short on time and it was much quicker to just hand her the cash and leave.

[jveritas]

The liberal communist blogs have been talking for while that Obama major public projects will be about building high speed train railways connecting many major cities across the country. They were so orgasmic that we are going to become like Europe where people travel using trains. The morons do not understand that if high speed railways are successful in the US we would have done it decades ago but it is an absolute failed business as AMTRAK has proved.

[dr_who]

If you have a governor/senator/mayor who proposes maglev trains, that’s a very good sign that your principality is going to have a major fiscal crisis in a few years time.

[NormsRevenge]

What many fail to understand is the US is geographically a heck of a lot larger area than a Japan or FRance. If this type of infrastructure had been started years ago, the obvious costs to build them would have been a lot cheaper then. The concentration of populations also makes it financially a risky scheme.

Also, are all those lib commie bloggers willing to waive any number of lawsuits that inevitably will prevent the construction of any route until it has been thoroughly contested due to environmental concerns over the effects on “sensitive” lands? I seriously doubt that.

Better they just move to Europe.. and save us all the melodrama and backstabbing.

[jveritas]

What many fail to understand is the US is geographically a heck of a lot larger area than a Japan or FRance

That is an excellent point. In fact very few of them brought up this very important issue but they were quickly shut down by the other members.

[MadIsh32]

That is certainly true (the geographic issue)

However incorporating mass transportation should not be a pipe dream and something we as conservatives should not shut the door on

If we are able to reduce the transportation costs for the average person, I see no reason why conservatives should be opposed to it

One solution is clustered regional high speed rail. The key thing is the technology is still not quite there to have 300 mph trains

If that was you simply need to build within regions (for example Richmond-Washington DC-Philadelphia-NYC with DC and NYC as major hubs), thusly letting airlines make longer, more profitable flights

[NormsRevenge]

Good ol’ BoomTown. They thank you for the donation! :-)

We’re gonna do a PepperMill visit in a few weeks, we always stop for a couple hours at Boomtown on the way back.

[NormsRevenge]

I don’t disapprove of mass trasportation or high speed rail but it is a luxury that doesn’t fit all scenarios or many frankly.

The regional approach done right is not one of those scenarios as you mentioned. There are a few places it does make sense. Smart growth advocates will say this meshes well with their intent to compress the populace and thus make these projects more doable both financially and from a construction view.

The one thing we will contend with is foreign participants being involved from a capital standpoint, and perhaps even an operational one as well.

Heck, being as foreigners already hold so much of our debt and already own a fair bit of properties and infratsructure in a few instances, we should let them pay for it and we will ride it for them. ;-)

But heck, who am I or others to stand in the way of progress? Most of us will be long gone before the tickets are issued anyway.

[MadIsh32]

LOL

Well here is the thing. As with energy solutions, transportation solutions require a wide range of tools

With energy the left has to understand that nuclear power and drilling are as much a part of the solution as is solar, wind, hybrids etc

likewise with transportation not only is high speed rail part of the solution but so is building more HOT lanes (so called Lexus lanes where the tolls change based on traffic) along with HOV lanes and intercounty connectors

[NormsRevenge]

That is true, not every solution will use the same tool.

I would propose we also look at pneumatic air tubes for transport of people and products. but it may need a bit of development and time to mature as a viable tool. ;-)
.. you may be able to ship eggs without cracking the shells but still run the risk it may scramble folks cranial contents if the stop is a bit rough.

[okie01]

likewise with transportation not only is high speed rail part of the solution but so is building more HOT lanes (so called Lexus lanes where the tolls change based on traffic) along with HOV lanes and intercounty connectors

The stated purpose of special lanes (HOV, etc.) is NOT to increase the flow of traffic.

Most urban transportation managers will freely admit that their purpose is to REDUCE the number of vehicles going past a given point in a specified time -- i.e., to slow the average commute.

Their real purpose is to get people out of cars into mass transit.

A freeway with unrestricted lane access will move more cars (and more people) per hour than one with an HOV lane -- or any other "traffic management" device.

[MadIsh32]

I agree completely.

Part of it is funding. The Capitol Beltway (495) in Virginia is having 2 hotlanes built between the Springfield mixing bowl and the Dulles Toll Road

495 badly needed 2 lanes. The state did not have the 1 billion dollars to do it

Simple solution? Have some company foot the bill and let them collect the tolls on it in a guise of “hot lanes”

You add lanes which are badly needed and dont have to put up the costs. If you don’t want to use them, you don’t have to, and therefore the taxpayer is saved

[bpjam]

I’m IN Las Vegas and I would directly benefit from a train which costs tens of billions of dollars which goes from a market of 2M people to one with 10M. But.....

Those trains are boondoggles from the getgo. We have a ‘monorail’ on The Strip which was partially paid for with Federal transportation dollars. Tourists don’t want to use it. It has lost money every year it has been in existence and there is no likelihood that it will stop being a financial drain any time soon.

But, just a little insight for those of you who have never wasted 4-6 hours of your life driving from Las Vegas to Los Angeles or vice versa... California loses millions of hours of lost productivity each year with its citizens sitting on the I-15 freeway waiting to get out of or into the LA area. Sunday afternoons and evenings drivers are adding hours to their commute back to LA because California won’t expand the freeways even though they have been offered the money to do the projects by the Nevada delegation.

It would actually SAVE California money if the maglev got built (as long as it wasn’t with their own money, that is). And, of course, it would infinitely benefit LV casinos. But it would also harm some other LV professionals because it would make an easier commute for many new transplants to go back to SoCal to see their doctors, accountants, etc. Trust me on this, I’ve had plenty of first hand experience with numerous clients. And it would actually add to the tourism base in SoCal since people in LV would have a place to go on a weekend trip like Disneyland which is much easier (”Vegas” isn’t exactly Disneyland to those people in Vegas who have kids. It’s a great place and all but it’s not Disneyland)

But there won’t be a maglev train between LA and LV because Harry ain’t gonna last that long. He has been talking up this train idea for about a decade at least. But there isn’t any money in the Federal budget in the last decade and there is even less chance of it now since it doesn’t really scream ‘vital necessity!!’

[NormsRevenge]

Been to Vegas a couple times since the peoplemover was built, never rode it either. I enjoy the walk up and down the strip..

Harry gone.. something to look forward to..

[Arizona Carolyn]

This is the sort of thinking that has California in the financial toilet... and to quote Gov. Sanford today on Cavuto, they have a huge GDP in CA and they have squandered it and refused to cut spending and why should the rest of the country be expected to bail them out! Answer: we shouldn’t.

[dr_who]

A-men. If San Francisco was to spontaneously fall into the sea and take a few neighboring areas with it, I’d cheer.

[Arizona Carolyn]

I guess we are one of the strange people who do ride the monorail in Las Vegas. I actually like the fact we can park our car and just walk out and take the light rail where we want to go.... anything not to have to drive on The Strip.