The Dogs Bark and the Caravan Moves On

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by Charles Booker

The dogs bark and the caravan moves on ...

8_25_09_russian_dogs The “dog” in the picture is not a dog at all but a coyote hitching a ride on Portland, Oregon’s light rail service. Actually he was kicked out of the airport terminal, so he calmly waked over to the light rail station and hopped on. To me this pretty well sums up my opinion of all these light rail projects springing up around the country―and here.

I get rather mulish when I suspect I am being hustled. Light rail is one of many sacred quests endorsed by the greenie/government alliance. Their other quests include wind power, vast fields of solar panels, and ducks in harness―anything but technology that works efficiently. The governments and giant corporations that are playing along do not really believe in this greenie fairytale. However they do believe there is a big pot of gold in the pockets of gullible taxpayers. Just ask GE execs, who plan, along with various governmental agencies, to sell wind turbines and federally mandated mercury laced light bulbs to women and children.

Greenies also hate highways and cars, so ever obliging federal, state and local government scam artists are plotting to spend billions and billions (what the hell, trillions) of tax dollars to subsidize the construction and upkeep of light rail systems. Why?

There are a number of reasons. One that comes to mind is that highways are no longer sexy; in fact maintenance has become frightfully expensive. In the years that followed WWII, government officials wet their official pants when they saw the German autobahns up close. The Congress imagined dishing out billions to local constituents for an American version, and if some of the dollars should stick to their hands…all the better. Highway envy was rampant. President Eisenhower endorsed the idea implying military necessity.

Alas light rail is hideously more expensive. The public is wary, so ecological monsters are needed to scare the sheep into the shearing shed. Ted Balaker, a transportation policy expert, estimated in an Orange County Register article that to move one passenger a mile costs $0.06 for freeways, $2.75 for light-rail. That is 40 times as much.

Balaker goes on to say, “Only 4% of Americans take public transportation to work. Even in cities they don't do it. Less than 25% of commuters in the New York metropolitan area use public transportation. Elsewhere it's far less―9.5% in San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose, 1.8% in Dallas-Fort Worth. As for total travel in urban parts of America―all the comings and goings for work, school, shopping, etc.― 1.7 % of those trips are made on mass transit.”

That is news you rarely hear in your bubbly local newscasts. Politicians and media types just love the idea of “European” style transportation. It is so chic. Why, the light rail drivers will even say ciao as you get off. They are certain the common everyday rubes will just pick up European habits like voting for real Socialists and striking for paid 60 day vacations.

Again they do not mention the backbreaking taxation public light rail requires. Yes, fewer people drive cars in Europe. And once more, taxation is the reason. Cities in Europe are like New York, built vertically, whereas here in the Southwest they are built horizontally. Gasoline is taxed far more heavily than here (they sell it in liters not gallons.) Also Europeans do not drive the huge distances between destinations that we do.

A study of traffic densities between San Jose and San Francisco showed that “a single light rail line is worth less than one sixth of a lane of expressway actually moving people.” Another article about studies of light rail projects concluded that “in the end, ‘light’ rail always means ‘heavy taxes.’”

We might add corruption as well. In the Canadian capital of Ottawa a big fight is brewing because the consortium picked to build the north-south commuter rail line kept financial terms secret."It was an accounting shell game," said Councilor Alex Cullen, a light-rail supporter who turned against the project when costs began to soar.

There are similar grumbles in Houston over the MTA Harris County management and funding of the light rail there. Even in Washington D. C. there is growing discontent over the failing promises of the city’s light rail.

So why are San Antonio and Austin talking about light rail projects including one along the holy “Corridor”? Let’s see―how about tax money and federal subsidies.

There is one place where dogs and people agree on public transportation―Moscow. Stray Moscow dogs ride the famous Metro system to move around and the city’s citizens have come to love them. In one station there is even a statue to a stray, Misha, killed by a crazy woman.

“Nice doggy. Wanna ride? We’ll pay.”