New Year: Streetcar Pork

The hits keep rolling along.  What’s a politician to do in an economic downturn and people feeling an economic pinch?  Ask for more money for special interest projects, of course.

The Bountiful Mayor has seen the light and will drop the TRAX push for streetcars (can someone tell me the difference between TRAX and a streetcar, other than the name?).

“After looking at transit lines in Europe, I don’t want a TRAX line anymore. I want what they call a tram or streetcar. They go curbside, so you can push a wheelchair from the curb onto it. They’re very modern-looking, very roomy and carry a lot of people.

“The tram is certainly the way to go,” he said, following visits to Vienna, Munich, Bordeaux, and even Monaco.

I would be interested to know how many would actually use this and based on the number, if it would be cheaper to just pay for a few taxis/vans to take them directly to their destination (and no, I would not support paying for their taxi service).

Who’s to pay for it?  No, not those who would use such a line – everyone will thanks to Uncle Sam:

“The problem, obviously, is money,” he said. “We’ll finish the EIS (environmental impact study) in 2009, have been working on this for a couple of years. Then we’ll have to work to present that to the federal government. It’s not like we’re starting from scratch. We may be in a good position.”

I assume the “good position” is that such an expenditure could be tagged onto soon-to-be President Obama’s infrastructure bills.  This is a pork proposal, plain and simple.