Interesting...a rail expert with Libertarian leanings endorses the concept. He doesn't consider the federal loan they are requesting as a handout, as it has to be paid back. The debate continues. Click title for link.
In a July newsletter for the Libertarian-leaning foundation, Poole [Robert Poole, the South Florida-based director of transportation for the Reason Foundation] calls All Aboard Florida a “worthwhile effort” and denounces accusations of ulterior motives as “silly” conspiracy theories. He notes that Amtrak trains making the same trip top out at 79 mph, while All Aboard Florida will hit 125 mph in some areas.
“This project represents an excellent case of ‘value capture’ by the parent company, since it expects to make a lot of money via its real estate investments in and around the new stations it will build,” Poole wrote. “That is the key to the success of Hong Kong’s profitable Mass Transit Railway Corporation.”
[later...]
“The conspiracy buffs expect the passenger project to tank, with the (Federal Railroad Administration) loans turning into de-facto grants to Florida East Coast Railway’s freight operation. That’s silly,” Poole wrote. “Most FRA loans already go to freight railroads. So there was no need to create a passenger rail service in order to get the loans.”
![Dr. W. H. Cotton’s ode: “Oh, My Lake Worth, Florida!” [circa 1920].](http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yhHyCn84ZIQ/WezjlEL-0tI/AAAAAAAAPZ4/CzkhriK6zpEJJ3d9Je1495d49gIhnMlxACK4BGAYYCw/s1600/LakeWorthPioneers.JPG)
