Quick Poll
With Georgia's Powerball Jackpot at $250 million for its drawing tonight, will you buy a lottery ticket today?
- Absolutely: 114
- Probably: 66
- Doubt It: 87
- No Way: 66
- No Opinion: 4
Total Votes:
Published Wednesday, August 11, 2010 in Opinion
Would you ride a high speed train from Atlanta to Nashville or Chicago?
Editorial
Would you like to board a high-speed train in Atlanta and travel north to Nashville? Or even farther north to Chicago? Or how about Atlanta to Florida by high-speed rail?
Such travel may be available in the future, although we have not heard of any timetable.
What we have heard this week is that Georgia and Tennessee are applying for a $34 million federal grant to continue the development of high-speed rail service from Atlanta to Nashville. The Georgia DOT said the money would help speed development of the train system. The money would come from the Federal Railroad Administration under the U.S. High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail program created by Congress last year.
Georgia and Tennessee already received $14 million last year to develop plans for the Atlanta to Chattanooga leg of the high speed rail service.
While the push now is on for service from Atlanta to Chattanooga and Nashville, eventually the service could stretch on to Louisville, Ky., and Chicago to the north and southward through Florida.
One day, high speed rail service will likely connect many major U.S. cities. Much like the interstate highway system was started back in the 1950s during the Eisenhower Administration, President Obama and future presidents are likely to see high speed rail service as a major component of travel alternatives throughout the country.
Japan has had the high speed bullet trains for decades. Certainly, this mode of transportation should be added to the travel mix in our country as we look for ways to reduce the number of passenger cars and trucks on our highways.
Comment On This Story
Times-Herald.com does not necessarily agree with the comments posted below. Responsibility of comments rests solely with the writer. Comments posted in ALL CAPS will be deleted.
Submission of a comment does not guarantee publication. Comments will be posted by a moderator after being scanned for abusive language, relevance, etc. See our Comments FAQ for more details.
Neil Monroe, can you please post your sources to support the statements you have made. You sound like one of the cartoon characters who say, "Uh, we're never going to make it. All is doomed. Run for hills. Run for your lives!" :)
Posted by Ashley at 6:20 PM
I agree entirely (though I may be a little uncivilized myself) High speed rail will be an alternative to air and road travel while MARTA is a way to commute. I am sorry for taking this conversation down the MARTA rabbit hole but it is something that will be needed for coweta. I personally would like to see high speed rail to points south and east as well.
Posted by Lg at 2:09 PM
High speed rail and MARTA are two different entities, they cannot be compared. MARTA is a city computer system; a high speed rail system is a city to city system. MARTA caters to the poor and has lax security. A high speed rail systems “target market” will NOT be the poor and the uncivilized in our society.
Posted by CD at 10:49 AM
YES, and I have friends who also would. There are so many conventions in each city, and both are international travel destinations. The Interstate between them crosses foggy mountains that frequently ice over. The distance between the two cities is just long enough to make driving both ways dangerous for one day's drive (on top of work.) I really like this idea & hope it comes to fruition!
Posted by KMcC at 6:46 PM
THanks,Well Lg look at the stats of the area up there. (marta)
I think it would be neat to have a high speed rail. Sad thing the gov has just about spent itself out of money.
Also the cost of a ticket to pay for the ride would be high.
Posted by Joe Cool at 10:11 AM
I am terribly sorry to hear about your cousin. In the end that does not show a trend. I assume that your family has the same economic and social background as you, so they probably believe the same perceptions that you do. This is the old ford vs chevy personal experience arguement that can go nowhere. When you can show imperical evidence then you have an arguement until them you are spectorating into the wind. I appreciate yor trying to pick a mud slinging fight about DEM vs REPUB but the reality is that I dont want the government to take care of me I want to take care of the government so as to have an effective and efficient society to live in. Joe you could still convince me that light rail and high speed rail are not the future.. I am not an expert and am open to sound logic but only facts will convince me. The truth is that we will have to expand 85 eventually and gas is going to $200 a week again it is ine vitable and we need to prepare for it before it happens.
Posted by Lg at 11:58 PM
There not perceptions since I have relatives that lived in those cities when marta started.
I also had a cousin that was assaulted in 1985 from a person that rode marta into town and left on marta. He wasn't from the area.
You keep believing in the gov to take care of you. While those dems get voted out in nov.
Posted by Joe Cool at 7:11 PM
No citation huh? Well it seems to me that your facts are just your perceptions. You know as well as I do that 1 strand of light rail will be running down 85 eventually. We can either pay for it while it can benefit Newnan or we can have it shoved down our throats either way it is coming.
Posted by Lg at 5:08 PM
Joe that is a perception not a fact. Here is a little unarguable fact... Our roads are still crowded and gas is going to be $4.00 again someday. Light rail and high speed rail will help both of these problems.
Posted by Lg at 12:13 PM
How about a personnal life experience and I am sure you can pull police reports from East Point, College Park etc. The crime went up when marta came to town. Fact.
The other reason againist high speed rail the cost.
Posted by Joe Cool at 4:29 PM
Then lets see a citation... if you have one. If you dont then you have no reason to be against it. Also enjoy that commute in five years when they need a fifth lane and they work on it for 3 years.
Posted by Lg at 11:50 AM
Yes, Yes !!!!!!
Posted by subatomic at 6:28 PM
It depends on which airline you are talking about. Southwest and Delta are making profits.
Posted by Joe Cool at 3:12 PM
When the marta was built every city that had marta the crime rate rose. Proven fact.
Actually I can get to the airport 10 minutes faster since the interstate added the extra lane. So it is not inevitable.
Yeah amtrac is a perfect example of gov waste.
Posted by Joe Cool at 2:10 AM
Sounds good. Of course it is not going to pay for itself but look at the airlines. They are charging for everything and struggling to stay alive. I guess it just comes down to the lesser of two evils.
Posted by Danny at 12:51 AM
Why would you ride a train to commit a crime? I dont think Joe Cool really thought through that statement. Criminals dont commute they arent that motivated. Marta is a poor example for any crime stat because it is in atlanta which simply has a high crime rate. Again the day WILL come when it is going to take Joe Cool an hour and a half to get to the airport IT IS INEVITABLE. You cant stop growth you can only plan for it. Noone hs said that industry is waiting for light rail to come here. Industry will only come to Coweta because it is cheaper here than elsewhere. They arent coming for a skilled workforce, they are coming for cheap infrastucture and proximity to Atlanta and its airport.
Posted by Lg at 9:53 PM
Saying industries are just waiting for light rail to come in so they can locate here is like saying restaurants will not come here because there is no alcohol..You can fool some of them but not me....
Posted by I.R. Right at 7:35 PM
A rail line would bring nothing but criminals like marta.
Posted by Joe Cool at 6:38 PM
Go ahead and read my post. A rail line will help bring in more TAX PAYERS and help other TAX PAYERS get to work. Do you think that bringing more industry is going to not raise the population in this area? It will and it will only bring freeloaders along with it thereby raising the population even more. Bring in light rail so people can take advantage of Atlanta's job market more easily. In fact I'd bet that if they put in a rail instead of another lane on 85 they would have helped traffic a whole lot more.
Posted by Lg at 12:25 PM
Rail is great! I enjoy it and would take advantage of it - sounds wonderful.
Posted by Coweta resident at 10:51 AM
We need more industry and employers, not more residents to demand more services therefore increasing taxes on those already here.
Posted by Disgusted at 10:40 AM
Good grief -- more grumbling about high speed rail not making a profit. And roads make a profit? Schools make a profit? The military makes a profit? The archaic airline system makes a profit? Yawn -- let's get on with building high speed rail -- it is what civilized nations do, not bounce around in a regional jet or drive yourself 500 miles in a car on a dangerous, congested roadway.
Posted by DENNIS at 1:54 AM
i would always take a train if i had a choice.
Posted by Michael at 1:37 AM
It would be good to have the choice of riding a train. Having said that, for about the past 75 years, everything has been built to accomodate our cars. From shopping centers to drive in windows for everything, we have built our life around our cars. In other countries, you can take the train to another city, then get to anywhere you need to go by bus or taxi. Can you imagine traveling to Atlanta, then figuring out how to get from there to any Newnan suburb ?
Posted by roger at 10:18 PM
I agree with David, freight tracks shouldnt be used by passenger rail unless there is a proven plan to have uninterrupted rail service for either type of train. Like the other poster I think chicago is a great place to visit but I sure wouldnt like to live there... I like Newnan, I think Newnan should have a public rail line going to Atlanta. In the end Newnan is a bedroom community for Atlanta. If you want to ensure that professionals and taxpayers make up the bulk of Newnans work force you will need to ensure they have a convenient way to get to work. If you want to get some more of these old victorian houses filled with Yuppies and off of the section 8 roles you are going to need to make the Atlanta commute easier. I honestly believe that Newnans biggest problem is the over abundance of welfare recipients... they will continue to be on welfare until it is too expensive for them to live here period. I know that change is tough for alot of the people around here but it is inevitable, you can only manage it.... Bring on the commuter rail.
Posted by Lg at 8:43 PM
For as long as these high speed trains don't have to share tracks with freight trains, then I'm all for it.
Posted by David Fountain at 6:54 PM
I just got back from Chicago last weekend, my son graduated from Navy Boot Camp at Great Lakes. We toured down town Chicago; went by Oprah’s home, saw Michigan Avenue, Navy Pier, and Donald Trumps’ Trump Tower and the Sears Tower (that now has another name, of which I can't remember). I loved Chicago; it was clean and friendly; unlike Atlanta, and even some posters here. The city offers lots and lots of activities; they are very welcoming to suburbanites and tourist alike. Their city transit system is very clean and it's cheap on the weekends, its $5.50 to ride the bus and/or train all day, Saturday AND Sunday; ride as many times as you want. The suburban train is $7.00 on the weekend to ride all day, Saturday AND Sunday; again, ride as many times as you want. I saw some poorly behaved teenagers be put off the suburban train, on the side of the tracks, so they don’t put up with foolishness, now there’s a concept!! When we left to go home the airport was brutal – and that’s being kind. I would definitely ride a high speed train to Chicago from Atlanta, I loved it in Chicago, sign me up!!!
Posted by C Drake at 6:30 PM
I hope all yall get a train and plane ticket. It will make the roads less crowded for me.Go for it...
Posted by road man at 4:07 PM
So thats what is wrong with you. You are from Chicago.
Posted by Bubba B Bad at 10:08 AM
I grew up rideing from Tenn, to Atlanta on the old L&N RR. It was exciting, fast, and dependable. Yes, I would vote for regular passenger service wheather it be rapid or regular speed.
Posted by Fred at 2:39 AM
I have ridden rail in asia and europe and it is the most cost effective public transportation system available... period. The fact that americans choose to not ride it will change when gas prices go back up. It is only a matter of time before oil goes through the roof again and we need to prepare for that day by building infrastructure today! I would prefer for the line to go to the northeast but Chicago is a great city and I will ride it at least once just to see it.
Hi Bubba!!!
Posted by Lg at 11:46 PM
Neil Monroe...you are CORRECT! The truth always makes sense, even if you refuse to believe it.
Posted by W.J. Butcher at 10:00 PM
Yeah C'mon. Since Airtran just dropped their service to MLI, Delta doesn't have to compete. Please give us an alternative!
Posted by GAonmymind at 9:54 PM
YES! especially if the roundtrip ticket to Chicago is less than $160, the average cost on gas to Chicago via driving.
Lets make it happen! I'm all for public transportation!
Some people consider the U.S. "the best country in the world," however most Europeans are in much better physical shape and health condition because more than half the population walk everywhere and take public transportation.
Travel and see for yourself.
Posted by T.N.H. at 5:59 PM
Lookinout, you don't think all of our public roads are paid for with taxes? Where can you drive on a privately owned road that turns a profit? I like to think I'm a free market libertarian, but there are such things as public goods. I'd be for it if all of the passengers don't have to submit to virtual strip searches for federal employees.
Posted by Ryan at 3:47 PM
The pure joy of riding in a train vs the cattle car air system is welcome. I would be one of the first on a train to Chicago!
Posted by Hate Airports at 3:44 PM
There are so many major shortcomings with trains - even high speed, ultra modern ones - it's hard to know where to start. Costs are incredible, off the charts, even using existing rail beds. Trains ignore the needs of travelers by being locked into point to point destinations that only a few hundred people a day may travel (how many people leave Atlanta to go to Chattanooga or Nashville in a day? The number is in the low hundreds.)
Trains were unstainable in the open market, are unsustainable anywhere in the world without massive government funding, and serve absolutely no purpose for society.
Need to go somewhere fast? Take a plane, anywhere you need to go. Have some time to get there? Take a bus or rent a car. In fact, if we need alternatives to car and plane travel, and there's demand, let's just create designated bus lines on the interstates. Accomplishes exactly the same thing as a train without the massive near trillion dollar cost.
This nation had an unmatched system of trains little more than 50 years ago. It died for good reason - planes are faster and more efficient, and roads give us all freedom.
Don't compare the U.S. to Japan or Europe; distances are much greater here, and no bullet train in the world is going to serve a 500-mile plus market as well as a plan. Europe is finding this out via low-cost air carriers such as Ryan Air. It's far cheaper to fly now than to take a train.
Let's not buy into Democratic hype about a massive government boondoggle to spend our tax money on an inefficient, unneeded transportation system.
Posted by Neil Monroe at 3:36 PM
YES! I would also like it to go from Atlanta to OKC and on to California! There is nothing like train travel - I loved it in Europe. Let's do it here.
Posted by karon hartman at 2:43 PM
Frankly, I'd just like to get to Atlanta or the College Park MARTA Station on anything!! We need a park-n-ride / GRTA lot at Hwy 154 & I-85. But rail is where we should invest long term - hi-speed or light.
Posted by Publius at 2:04 PM
If this was a feasible project don't you think some of the big money names would be all over it. The high speed train from the airport to Doraville is not a self supportig entity. Apparently the bus system from Newnan to down town Atlanta is not self supporting as they are looking to increase their revenue. If enough people would support this to a profitable end the money for this would be forth coming from free enterprise not Grants which means tax money taken from the many to support the few. If we had built a rail system rather than 4 years of playing with I-85 I doubt the cost would have been much more but people would still be on I-85 rather than on a rail system.
Posted by disgusted at 12:34 PM
I'd be one of the first in line to buy my ticket!! High speed train travel is more appealing to me than flying.
Posted by MeeMaw at 12:21 PM
Yes, high speed or slow speed
Posted by Doug at 11:56 AM
Would we like high speed rail to Nashville or Chicago is not the right question. Like it? Sure, it would be cool. Want to pay for it in taxes? No. There is not one passenger rail system in the US that pays for itself. Inevitably it has to be subsidized through taxes.
Posted by Lookinout at 11:52 AM
I recall hearing this about 10 years ago, I figure we will read this again in 10 more years, wondering where our trains are. The best idea that will never happen.
Posted by Devan at 11:41 AM
This would be another waste of money that our Gov. doesn't have
Posted by charlie at 11:24 AM
absolutely!! I hope becomes reality
Posted by MR at 10:51 AM
Most Popular
- Viewed
- Emailed
- Commented
- A New Piedmont Newnan: Women's services prepared for more births
- 10th Annual Run for Angels: Event bigger, better than ever
- Education Notes: Phi Delta Kappa scholarship available to future educators
- Lady Cougars shine on Senior Night with win over M.L. King
- Famed airmen visit Northgate; Students learn 'Red Tails' more than a movie
- Special Olympics: Cowetan named Georgia's Female Athlete of the Year
- Around town: Blood drives scheduled
- Where does Newnan see itself in 10 years?
- Stewart finished 11th grade at Warner
- Respected Coweta baseball coach, ex-Brave remembered
- Respected Coweta baseball coach, ex-Brave remembered
- A New Piedmont Newnan: Women's services prepared for more births
- Obituary: Mr. Pat Shepherd
- We encourage a daylong visit to the $100 million National Infantry Museum
- Hospital bringing new physicians, medical practices
- Piedmont Newnan Hospital kicks off $8 million capital campaign
- Community Garden: Newnan's New Leaf Project seeks volunteers
- Obituary: Mrs. Mary Frances Banks Storey
- Perfect two-time state wrestling champ Tyler Askey stays on pace for two of wrestling's rare feats
- Palmer enters race for judge
- Hwy. 34 Bypass: Another six months needed to complete widening job
- Where does Newnan see itself in 10 years?
- Smith: Lobbyists not an influence
- Proposed legislation aimed toward curbing metal thefts
- Pastor's Corner: Part 2 – Is Calvinism biblical?
- Montana's mom tells her story of an autisic child
- We encourage a daylong visit to the $100 million National Infantry Museum
- Cleanup on Ishman Ballard property to cost county $11,400
- GDOT needs to improve its record on completing road construction projects
- Palmer enters race for judge
yes i would
1/23/2012
Link To This Comment
yes i would
Posted by tamika williams at 7:40 PM