Comments on: Contractors want roads, not trains

By: Goldie30Stephens

Goldie30Stephens — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 15:03:03 +0000

It's known that cash can make us disembarrass. But what to do when somebody does not have money? The only one way is to get the loan and just small business loan.

By: MeghanH

MeghanH — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 22:12:43 +0000

I guess the “market” isn’t as intelligent in this particular case as some might like it to be. Companies are hungry for some of the stimulus money — so hungry, in fact, that they will underbid on a project just to get the job. Not smart if your motive is profit, but this, if my economics education serves me, is called COMPETITION.

Now, once competition has driven down costs to the point that the State can spend leftover funds on something that might actually bring long-lasting value to our infrastructure, those who so often extol the value of competition and open markets don’t like their effects.

Sorry, folks. You can’t determine where every single penny of transportation funding goes, though I’m sure you would like to.

By: Todd Boulanger

Todd Boulanger — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 17:40:33 +0000

I am glad that the Oregon Legislature is finally stepping up to the bar in supporting rail service south of Portland.

For too long (10+ years) they have been coasting on Washington State investments in rail cars, service priority (BNSF), and track improvements for the Cascades service. The article forgot to mention that Salem was very close to cutting its service back from 2 to 1 train a day just last year (?).

By: VR

VR — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 16:22:42 +0000

“I had better not hear one more politician talk about our “crumbling infracstructure”. When faced between a choice between something stupid “trains” or something smart “fixing highways and bridges” these moronic politicians go with stupid everytime.”

Rail is part of our infrastructure.

By: VR

VR — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 16:08:42 +0000

“These companies are on the verge of dying on the vine right now and need that money to stay alive”

I call B.S.

There are so many repaving and road projects kicking off in the USA right now, including the northwest, that municipalities are having a hard time finding pavers and the supply of asphalt and concrete are stressed.

Almost every single “shovel ready” project was a repaving one….

Pork indeed…

By: Contractors Not Satisfied with Every Penny of Gas Tax, Want More | blogging cascadia

Fri, 04 Sep 2009 08:27:40 +0000

[…] Daily Journal of Commerce is reporting that contractors are griping that the Oregon Transportation Commission spent some stimulus dollars buying passenger rail cars […]

By: Craig

Craig — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 01:17:09 +0000

Please, we spent trillions on roads, the highest government subsidized transportation mode ever created and we’re complaining about 30 mil for an alternative? The privately created train system has been undercut for years. The US will be in much better shape if we have a transportation system based on choices rather then forcing everyone into one mode.

By: Justin Carinci

Justin Carinci — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 18:04:28 +0000

I’m not sure the comparison to wars is apt. But we’re going to be debating the mix of roads and rails for a while as we try to figure out the best way to accommodate a growing population.

By: Joseph Shaddix

Joseph Shaddix — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 16:44:44 +0000

I had better not hear one more politician talk about our “crumbling infracstructure”. When faced between a choice between something stupid “trains” or something smart “fixing highways and bridges” these moronic politicians go with stupid everytime.

By: Dan McFarling

Dan McFarling — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 05:16:49 +0000

Is it newsworthy that people who make money by paving over the planet want more money to pave over the planet?! Building more roads is NOT a solution. We are FAR behind the rest of the civilized world in building safe, fast, environmentally sound transportation.

In the past two decades more Americans have died on our road system than all the American deaths in over 233 years of war! That includes the Revolution, Indian wars, 1812, Spanish American War, Civil War (including both sides), WWI and II, Korea, Viet Nam, and all the Middle East conflicts. In other countries throughout the world people travel safely and efficiently, and much faster, in modern trains. It is time for us to play catch up!