A pivotal vote is coming in the Ohio Senate Highways and Transportation Committee, possibly as soon as tomorrow, deciding the fate of passenger rail through Columbus. H.B. 2, which contains language that would fund the Ohio Hub 3C Project, had amendments due to Chairman Patton’s office today at noon. One of those amendments, I suspect, will remove passenger rail from the transportation budget.
In the Ohio House of Representatives, this bill passed both committee and third consideration along nearly partisan lines (Democrats for, Republicans against.) In the Ohio Senate, the majority is vastly republican, which is foreboding to the fate of passenger rail. During senate committee hearings most of the republicans shared grave concerns regarding passenger rail.
These concerned were mostly along worries that the state would be subsidizing this project’s operations for years to come. Other concerns ranged from who has oversight of the funding (The Controlling Board and O.D.O.T. T.R.A.C. or the Ohio General Assembly), if it will interfere with freight rail, if tickets will be competitively priced with buses and car costs. Really though, it falls into mostly political grandstanding of republicans attempting to torpedo part Governor Strickland’s agenda.
While many of these concerns are not warranted due to how much roads are subsidized comparatively and other externalities the others will be answered by the now commissioned report being done by Woodside Consultants due by August. If you support passenger rail, the time act is now.
The Highways and Transportation Committee is meeting tomorrow, March 17, at 2:30 in the Senate Finance Hearing Room. This meeting is open to public testimony and to do so you will need 30 copies of your testimony and arrive at the meeting before it starts to fill out a witness information form. If you don’t have time to attend committee the best thing is to send a individualized email or phone call to your state senator.