pothole fishing
“Nothing can mess up an automobile wheel alignment and a motorist’s disposition quite as quickly as a pothole.”
Hitting a pothole at high speed increases the chance of damage to tires, wheels, shocks, struts or springs. These repairs can become rather costly including the loss of time from work as you have your vehicle serviced.
In today’s Register headline, “US potholes are as deep as holes in ‘cities’ pockets,” the Register quotes Bloomberg News reporting that “California spends less than half of the $6 billion a year needed to keep its roads from falling into disrepair, said Jim Earp, a state Transportation Commission member.” The article goes on the say that “The State has an unfunded $37 billion backlog of road maintenance work, according to the Transportation Commission.”
Let’s stand back and reconsider our infrastructure priorities. A backlog of “$37 billion in unfunded maintenance repairs” compounded with a statewide budget deficit north of $25 billion. LAO. Yet voters in the North were enamored with the pipe dream of spending upwards of $85 billion for the 800 mile Californian High Speed rail as they approved the initial $9 billion of bonded indebtedness with our state’s credit cards. That single stroke of approval, at the end of 30 years, might end up costing close to $20 billion dollars.
Do readers recall the “too big to fail” rescue of Government Motors? The LA Times once wrote that “The economies of 50 metropolitan areas — including most of those in Michigan, Ohio and Indiana — depend heavily on the jobs and incomes generated by GM and its Detroit counterparts and their suppliers.”
So we let our roads and bridges fall apart to drive Americans out of the very same vehicles that are made in the USA along with the tens of thousands of parts suppliers in the supply chain by promoting HSR in California. President Obama is driving up the MPG along with new hybrids yet simultaneously promotes that we park our cars and ride the rails. What’s the plan man?
Instead of spending the $3 billion received to date on the HSR I would urge those in power to recognize the simple facts as stated over the past two years. While I will refrain form rehashing prior arguments opposing this feel good project we have 37 million residents in or state of which 70-90 percent drive wherever they go.
And from a HSR blog who refuses to post my opposition I just read:
“And some government watchdogs are concerned that a linchpin commitment to taxpayers in the bullet train’s financing measure — that no local, state or federal subsidies would be required to keep the trains operating — may be giving way. High-speed rail planners recently advised state lawmakers that attracting billions in crucial private financing will probably require government backing of future cash flow. “Without some form of revenue guarantee from the public sector, it is unlikely that private investment will occur at [the planned] level until demand for California high-speed rail is proven,” project planners wrote in December. That is feeding fears that a larger state commitment, beyond the $9 billion in construction bonds approved by voters, could be sought to complete the 800-mile project. “To now put in that we have to [give] some kind of revenue guarantee . . . is totally unacceptable,” Lowenthal said. “That’s not what we agreed to.”
Senator Lowenthal’s concerns are very valid. We were told that the HSR would not require, nor would we provide, any government subsidy. We must hold their feet to the fire on proof of funding before the first mile of track is in the ground.
Stay tuned. This HSR fight is far from over. While we await the outcome watch out for those potholes as it will take decades before they will all be repaired.
Perhaps there is a conspiracy at play. Let the roads fall apart. It’s good for the auto repair business.
HSR.
HSR
But more in particular, a rebuilding of the railway corridors into the future transportation choices.
cook.
In the interim the state acknowledges that our roads are falling apart. Not too long ago I drove through Santa Ana near the Sears outlet. Those streets are a perfect illustration of what happens when you neglect your infrastructure.
And at the same time how many of the 350,000 residents of Santa Ana will have the pleasure of riding the HSR to SF or SAC?
Will it be one time on a free grand opening or a regular schedule?
It may feel good on day one but what about tomorrow?
“a rebuilding of the railway corridors into the future transportation choices”
Typical liberal blather that means – taxpayers, open your wallets time and again for a public boondoggle that will do absolutely nothing to reduce traffic, global warming, or wear and tear on our streets and highways but will make politicians and public employees feel warm and fuzzy.
Keep pushing the truth Larry. It’s getting traction in other states and some day it will have to be addressed because the lies will only keep getting bigger.
Solar and electric cars, plus road repair.
Thank you Jim.
We do have a responsibility to reduce our dependence on foreign oil. Many years ago, in 1964, chrysler produced 50 turbine prototype cars that could run on basically any liquid including tequila. It did not require any oil changes or tune ups.
The government shut down funding.
In March of 2009, the Cutting Edge a talk show team interviewed Parnelli Jones, one of the Indy 500 drivers of that vehicle. While we interviewed Parnelli in his Torrance show room he did not have one in his collection.
I went into Buena Park, Monday though Wednesday this week near Knott’s Berry Farm. My supervisor picked me up and we car pooled. Too bad for him, he had to drive alone back to RSM from Santa Ana.
I looked at the freeway’s, the 5 and the 57 and the 22 and the 91.
Where is the room for the electric car, the alcohol car, a high mileage hybrid car? Each with only one person inside. It does not matter how much more public subsidies are put into these built out corridors, there is very little room to add more “single user cars”.
(1) The freeway corridors that are so useful now, were built with public funds, and rebuilt with public funds.
(2) The freeways are public property that are used by private parties.
(3) The gas and auto taxes the car users pay do not even cover the cost of operation and maintenance of the freeway corridors.
I agree that the current model for the HSR is BS theft.
This “HSR” should be the next federal works project, one that produces something of lasting value, like the one’s that produced the interstate freeways, Hover Dam and the like.
Open your eyes, the private automobile is a dying transportation choice.