HIGH SPEED RAIL 'PRIZE' AWAITS

In the Feb. 3, 2010 Bakersfield Californian Opinion Section, planning consultant and mediator John Hardisty (Jack) wrote an article urging community leaders to organize a campaign to compete for a test track and heavy maintenance facility for the high speed rail system. (See “High-speed rail prize awaits the valley community that has its act together,” http://tinyurl.com/HSRbakersfield/)


No doubt we can argue until we are blue in the face over the long-term future of high speed rail, and whether or not it should be built. But California getting $2.3 billion in federal economic stimulus dollars, combined with $9 billion in bonds voters approved in 2008, means at least some of the system will be built.


Part of that “some” will be a test track and heavy maintenance facility. It will be built somewhere in the Central Valley. Fresno leaders believe it should be built in Fresno. Merced leaders believe it should be built in Merced. So far, there are 15 sites being proposed, including two in Kern County – Shafter and Wasco. Attached to this post are pdf files containing both proposals.

But the bottom line is that construction and operation of a heavy maintenance facility and test track to support high speed rail will mean thousands of jobs and millions of dollars coming into the community that wins this “prize.”

Kern County needs to get its promotional act together before it’s run over by this high speed train.