Why isn’t the high-speed rail – high speed? Why is this topic being criticized by clear-thinking people? Why is something that is supposed to be fast, convenient and "transportation-for-the-future" being dubbed as “half-fast”?
This $800 million-plus dollar expenditure is a topic throughout the state. It is another example of how tax dollars are being squandered. It is not just the amount of money being spent on the project, it is also about the waste and haste in how it is being spent. What is the hurry?
Could improved rail service be beneficial? Could our transportation in Wisconsin and the United States be improved by a great rail system? I think we all could agree yes to these questions, but again, this Milwaukee to Madison train effort is just a “knee jerk” pendulum swing activity.
I can well recall just a mere 60 years ago going to the Kiel train depot at
7:30 a.m., boarding the train (the Milwaukee Road) with my mother and going to Milwaukee to enjoy a day of shopping. After five or six hours in the big city, eating at the Kresge’s lunch counter, shopping at Gimbles and Shusters, we would get back on the train at 3:30 p.m. and be back in Kiel for supper.
I can recall as a 12-year-old having my father drive me and our 75-year-old neighbor, Mr. Shubert, to Sheboygan where we would get on the Northwestern train and head to Milwaukee to attend a Milwaukee Braves baseball game. What a great experience.
I can remember in the early 1960s, there were still some passenger trains running. In fact, several local band directors attended the Midwest Music
Directors Convention and did use the train but it certainly wasn't convenient as the Kiel depot no longer existed. They were however, still able to board the train in Kiel. Finally, and unfortunately for those railroad passengers, roads continued to improve and railroad service ceased entirely for passengers.
What has happened over the last 40 years has been a result of the pendulum swing removing train service. Railroad beds have been removed or replaced by bicycle trails. Now that was a real step forward in improving and speeding up transportation and encouraging people to travel via train. So, the pendulum is starting to swing the other direction, but they want to push it much faster than a reasonable swing.
Which brings us back to the Milwaukee to Madison train. We again seem to be dealing with a lack of common sense and the purely political desire to spend money quickly and stupidly just to make a political statement. Why are we in such a rush? Why can’t we take our time and build a truly modern and futuristic rail system? Why can’t the train be electric? The monorail at Disney World was set up in 1971. It was futuristic then. That was forty years ago!
I believe we all recognize we are in a changing world with elevated population, fast-life styles and hectic schedules. I believe most people recognize the need for new, improved transportation systems. However, what most of the clear-thinking, common sense citizens of Wisconsin don’t want is a government spending $800 million-plus dollars on a project that is not innovative, is “half-fast”, will not be profitable, will cost US more money each year in taxes if the system needs subsidies, etc., etc.
WE THE PEOPLE need to call Madison daily, write letters and let our voices be heard. TELL THEM what you think! Don’t spend money foolishly, be prudent, be fiscally responsible, don’t spend what you don’t have, walk before you run, plan your work and work your plan, and live within your means. Only you can make a difference. VOICE YOUR OPINION!
