Quote:
Originally Posted by StaggerLee
I know they've been talking about extending the MBTA commuter rail north to Nashua and Manchester for some time now. I personally would love this. Unfortunately it seems NH doesn't want to fund it.
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I think a lot of the controversy is WHERE the $$ would come from... i.e. I think they were going to take the money from the HIGHWAY funds. This would be taking away the ability to repair the roads, fix bridges, etc... There's also the argument of "why are we paying for it if we're not using it", or why are our AUTO tolls going towards RAIL?
Honestly, if you want to make a good investment, invest in real estate in the 93 corridor north of Concord... and sit on it. I think it's inevitable that the rail will EVENTUALLY go through... You'll have rail from MASS > Nashua > Manchester > Concord (? >White mountains?). At any rate, the I-93 corridor is a pretty good place to live b/c of the easy access to Boston & the White Mountains AND the lakes region... Think about it, if you lived north of Concord, you would commute to just south of Concord (maybe Manchester), then take the train to Boston. Big NON-TAXED $alary for working in Boston, a very nice place to live, and a stone's thow from the nicest vacation spots in the northeast! I dunno, that's just my take!
That's why I DON'T live on the I-93 corridor! I like the country and the country atmosphere. I think the urban sprawl is unfortunately inevitable, though. Hey, less than 70 (50?) yrs ago there were NO INTERSTATES!!! I know a lot of the "old folks" were disgruntled b/c it ruined the country now that everyone could commute and live in the country.
From what I understand, there are several things that will increase rail freight traffic.
1) Disintegrating roadway infrastructure... The highway system has been taxed and overtaxed by heavy trucks pummeling the roadways and destroying the pavement. It takes time and $$ to repave/rebuild. There are also a LOT of trucks on the road which are causing congestion.
2) Rail is more efficient and "green".
3) The recent increase in size of the Panama Canal will now allow larger vessels through the Panama Canal; thus, allowing the ships to continue directly to the East coast (where new ports are being build in VA... you guessed it - with plenty of RAIL access!)
Just my $0.03 ;-)
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