The eight billion initial investments in the high-speed rail are expected to produce about 320,000 jobs and roughly thirteen billion dollars in economic benefit. These include construction and operation jobs, as well as manufacturing and supply chain options. By increasing mobility while decreasing crowding and spreading, high-speed rail makes our country more competitive while simultaneously creating economic development. The High Speed Rail could boost the economy and could provide alternate transportation, therefore it should be built.
Generally, some might argue, that although it is a boost in the economy it takes thousands of acres from farmers. This is true, but economic impacts seen across the country show local projects can have big benefits on the surrounding area, while regional efforts are likely to generate a ripple effect. When a seventeen million renovation happened in the Milwaukee Intermodal Station it was projected to increase land values around the station by $227 million dollars and create 3,000 new jobs in the Milwaukee area, according to multi-state economic impact study (Mahoney). And congress’ “Buy America” program ensures that high-speed rail lines and trains will be built and operated using items made by American Industries. Immediately after the high-speed rail funding announcement, more than thirty rail manufactures and supplies committed to establish or expand their United States operations if they are chosen to build America’s next generation high-speed trains. So if we build the High-Speed Rail shouldn’t we expect the same results in California?
Furthermore, the high-speed rail network could mean twenty-nine million fewer car trips and 500,000 fewer plane flights annually, according to a 2006 study ...
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Works Cited
Almendrala, Anna. “California High Speed Rail Still Faces A Lot Of Obstacles.” The
Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 09 July 2012. Web. 16 Nov 2012 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/09/california-high-speed-rail-problems_n_1660416.html Mahoney, Christopher. ‘High Speed Rails Environmental Impact.” Tracking News and Events in the Railroad Industry RSS. CNN, 20 Nov. 2012. Web. 16 Nov. 2012. http://www.railroad.net/high-speed-rails-environmental-impact-394.html Lagos, Marisa. “Legislature Approves High-speed Rail Spending.” SFGate.
Thehuffingtonpost.com, 9 July 2012. http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Legislature-approves-high-speed-rail-spending-3689191.php
Tutton, Mark. “How Green Is High-Speed Rail?-CNN.com” CNN. Cable News Network, 19 Nov. 2011. Web. 16 Nov. 2012 http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/18/world/how- green-is-hsr/
When construction takes place, it is usually way before it is actually needed. Of course it is helping prevent dangerous and fatal occurrences but for the most part some of these changes can wait. Instead of spending so much money on our transportation category we should be putting more into education. “The money that the Federal Budget gives for education covers college aid loans, special education programs, free lunch to students in need, anti-discrimination efforts, research, and special programs” (Document D). Education is one of the most important things a person can have. ”
When time came to build the transcontinental railroads, the government had given about 150 millions of acres of land for the railroad development, which would greatly influence transporta...
In Henry George’s article, What the Railroad Will Bring Us, it discusses the main social, political, and economic transformations that the trans-continental railroad would bring to the state of California. More importantly, he discusses not only the benefits, but also discusses the major drawbacks with the arrival of the railroad. Henry George stated the railroad would be the “greatest work of the age” (297). With a railroad stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific, multiple benefits would be brought to the state of California. First, the railroad will not only create a new means of transportation across the United States, it additionally would also become “one of the greatest material prosperity” of its time (298). This means more people, more houses,
When you encounter a city such as Chicago, it is practically impossible to avoid CTA and Metra trains. From short store errands to long journeys home, the CTA is there as your personal downtown car. If you do not have enough money to put into owning a car or simply do not want to put up with trying to find parking in the congested city, the CTA is there for you. Where more people to use the CTA, the amount of gas polluting the earth would significantly decrease the pollution levels in Chicago. Since there aren't as many cars on the road, it not only decreases the carbon monoxide leaking from cars but the amount of cars on the road, which also decreases the amount of people on the road. Numerous laws state how using the CTA could benefit people in Chicago overall. These are just some of the reasons Metra and the CTA has impacted everything from population to economics and even political and environmental issues.
The construction of railroads in California impacted the state physically, socially, and economically; and ultimately helped propel California into the state it is today. During a time when masses of people were migrating to California but were doing so in an inefficient, and sometimes dangerous way, the first transcontinental railroad provided a fast and easier alternative. During the 1850's and 60's California was booming as many people from across the country uprooted their lives and headed west to begin a new life and attempt to strike it rich. Covered wagons were not an ideal way of travel but were the only way to go until the railroads were constructed.
Shen, Evan. "The Economic Impacts of the Transcontinental Railroad on the US." City of Sacramento, n.d. Web. 2 Dec. 2013.
Throughout the late nineteenth and the early twentieth century, the United States economy changed dramatically as the country transformed from a rural agricultural nation to an urban industrial gian, becoming the leading manufacturing country in the world. The vast expansion of the railroads in the late 1800s’ changed the early American economy by tying the country together into one national market. The railroads provided tremendous economic growth because it provided a massive market for transporting goods such as steel, lumber, and oil. Although the first railroads were extremely successful, the attempt to finance new railroads originally failed. Perhaps the greatest physical feat late 19th century America was the creation of the transcontinental railroad. The Central Pacific Company, starting in San Francisco, and the new competitor, Union Pacific, starting in Omaha. The two companies slaved away crossing mountains, digging tunnels, and laying track the entire way. Both railroads met at Promontory, Utah on May 10, 1869, and drove one last golden spike into the completed railway. Of course the expansion of railroads wasn’t the only change being made. Another change in the economy was immigration.
The growth of the railroad was one of the most significant elements in American economic growth, yet it hurt small shippers and farmers in many ways. Extreme competition between rail companies necessitated some way to win business. To do this, railroads would offer rebates and drawbacks to larger shippers who used their rails. This practice hurt smaller shippers, including farmers, because often times railroad companies would charge more to ship products short distances than they would for long trips. This is known as the “long haul, short haul evil”.
During the reconstruction of America after the Civil War, the government allocated land grants and premiums to encourage work on the railroads, which proved effective. However, such incentives led to a questionable quality of work. Land donations and loans offered to both companies would eventually become profitable with the addition of railroad tracks running through, and the la...
Many mass construction projects in the history of the United States have had a major impact on the economy and culture; however, not many of these have had as large as an impact as the Interstate Highway Act of 1956. The Interstate Highway Act revolutionized the way that we think about highways today. The act created an extremely easy mode of transportation for people across the country. Not only was the Interstate Highway Act extremely helpful in making rural and urban transportation for normal people, but it also helped commercial businesses in increasing sales across the country. These businesses were now able to transport their goods cheaper and faster. The Interstate Highway Act was tremendously beneficial in regards to its economic, social, and cultural significance. The legislation was significant economically in the way that it promoted business and cut travel costs, it was significant socially in the way that it allowed people to see friends and family even if they did not live close, and it was significant culturally in the way that it allowed people to move out to the country for low costs in order to live a happier life.
The railroad played a major role in forging the history of many countries including the United States of America. The railroad began to bring people to places that before then where only accessed by weeks of dangerous travel over harsh and deadly terrain. The industrial revolution had ushered in a completely new era. The new era was one of mass production, supply and demand, and new requirements of industry. The growth of industry had created new demands for transit, trade, and more robust supply lines. The railroad boom across the U.S. had spread and proceeded to grow the economy quickly therefore, many people began using the rail roads just as quickly. The rail market continued to grow and by the 1860’s all major cities within the United States were connected by rail.
The Transcontinental railroad could be defined as the most monumental change in America in the 19th century. The railroad played a significant role in westward expansion and on the growth and development of the American economy (Gillon p.653). However, the construction of the transcontinental railroad may not have occurred if not for the generous support of the federal government. The federal government provided land grants and financial subsidies to railroad companies to ensure the construction. The transcontinental railroad contributed to the formation of industry and the market economy in America and forever altered the American lifestyle.
Railroads were America’s first big business and contributed a great deal towards advancing industrialization. Beginning in the early 1870's, railroad construction in the United States expanded substantially. Before the year 1871, approximately fourty-five thousand miles of track had been laid. Up until the 1900's another one-hundred and seventy thousand miles were added to the nation's growing railroad system. This growth came about due to the erection of transcontinental railroads. Railroads supplied cities and towns with food, fuel, materials, and access to markets. The railroad system made way for an economic prosperity. The railroad system helped to build the physical growth of cities and towns. It even became another means of communication. Most importantly, it helped to produce a second
In January of 2010, the Legislative Council have eventually approved the funding for the construction of Guandzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link (XRL), which costs $66.9 billion. This astronomical cost raised a lot of discussions that whether the railway worthed it or not. The whole alignment of the XRL railway is about 140 kilometres with its intermediate stations in Humen, Longhua and Futian. Some have argued that the new railway could contribute to Hong Kong's short-term and long-term development. Others have argued that the whole construction was unnecessary and it costed too much, which made the controversy. The concept of 'worthy or not' is a complex one and actually depends on what people valued. In 2009, there were about 6607 people crossing the border between the Mainland and Hong Kong by MTR's trains, while that of using two crossing-border rail lines through Lo Wu and Lok Ma Chau were about 278960. Is this huge amount of people who cross the border oftenly going to use the new line? It seems to me that the negative problems brought by the new line may be more than ...
“We applaud President Trump tonight for outlining a renewed focus on the need for bipartisan action towards improving and investing in America's transportation infrastructure,” offered Patrick Jones, Executive Director and CEO of IBTTA. Jones went on to make a case for cutting “…burdensome regulations and laws that prevent states from accessing all available funding options to meet their local needs.” Those regulations include restricting tolling of the Interstate System, an important way states might fund improvements. Jones noted that some of America’s highways would never have become a reality without tolls. He added, “Tolling is both a proven and effective tool to help pay for our nation’s infrastructure and an incubator of ideas driving mobility in the future.”