The Florida Rail Enterprise, the state agency responsible for constructing high speed rail in the Sunshine State, will hold its next public information meeting on the Tampa-Orlando line this Tuesday, August 31 at 6:30 p.m. at the Tampa Convention Center.
Earlier in the day, at 2:30 p.m., there will be a meeting designed for disadvantaged business enterprises, minority/women businesses and other small businesses about the procurement process and subcontracting opportunities. Registration for that will begin at 1:30 p.m., and will also take place at the Convention Center.
Meanwhile, a critic of hsr, calling himself Band of Brothers, has issued an e-mail with questions that they want answered at the meeting, such as:
A Press-to-Test of the veracity of this highly lobbied – foreign system –
1. Will they start construction from both ends* Tampa and Orlando at the some time?
2. Will the entire system be bonded at a fix price and not opened ended – so taxpayers and not on teh hook for overruns?
3. How can it be high speed if it has to make three stops before in arrives in Tampa – is this A HIGH SPEED LOCAL?
4. Is the technology old last generation technology / a foreign company paying lobbyist to dump – to lock us into old technology?
5. Show us the Beef not the phony gravy — glowing adjectives
6. 20,000 jobs – what jobs and for how long?
Conclusions – improve AMTRAK to high speed ACELA Service and wait for the next American Designed and Made – Hi Tech Next Gen HSR system
* If started at Orlando International Airport – this project will run out of money and reasons when it reaches Disney Worl
This article appears in Aug 26 – Sep 1, 2010.