High Speed Rail Affirmative
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- HSR K2 Competitiveness-Empirics
NEC K2 EconomyNEC k2 national economy---20% of nation’s GDP, k2 biomedical and tech industries nationally, tourism, and national security. Investment in HSR solves revitalization.Voorhees No Date (Alan, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planing and Public Policy @ Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, “Northeast Corridor Action Plan: A Call for a New Federal-State Partnership”, http://policy.rutgers.edu/vtc/reports/REPORTS/NECAP.pdf |SK) The Northeast region includes the nation’s capital and major financial and corporate centers, accounting for more than 20 percent of the nation’s population and GDP despite including only about 2 percent of its total land area. The Northeast urban core produces 10 times more GDP per square mile than the national average. Densely concentrated Northeast cities and their suburbs support critical national service and manufacturing industries and serve as gateways to the U.S. Washington, D.C.’s concentration of federal government activity attracts travel from individuals, corporations, state and local governments and academic institutions located on the NEC. Financial services are centered in New York City, but are also closely linked to financial centers, centers of government, and related industries in Boston, Washington, Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore. Technology and biomedical centers, from greater Washington’s information technology cluster to the bioscience clusters of Boston, New Jersey and Philadelphia, also rely on the Northeast’s large professional workforce and high-speed travel between these places. Northeastern cities are more dependent on non-auto transportation than most other parts of the nation due to the compact nature of their communities, which were developed prior to the ascendancy of the automobile. Intercity passenger rail is particularly critical for the heavy volume of medium-distance business travel along the corridor. Rail is often the most convenient and fastest way to travel between city centers along the corridor. For many cities, airports are located a considerable distance from the business centers, and interstate highways that connect these cities are plagued by congestion. Commuter rail further enhances regional mobility by providing an efficient means of transporting workers daily between the center cities and surrounding residential communities. Commuter rail also connects medium and large sized business centers within a region, such as Providence and Boston (MBTA); Stamford and New York City (Metro-North); Trenton, Newark and New York City (NJ TRANSIT); Wilmington and Philadelphia (SEPTA); and Baltimore and Washington (MARC). One notable example of rail’s importance to the business community is in Philadelphia, where the only commercial office tower to be constructed in the last decade is adjacent (and connected) to the 30th Street Station shared by Amtrak, SEPTA and NJ TRANSIT. Without excellent intercity rail services, the attractiveness of central city locations throughout the Northeast would be reduced. If cities become less attractive, growth would be concentrated in suburban and exurban areas and lead to subsequent pressures for greater expansion of road capacity, despite public opposition and limited financing for such expansion even today. The benefits of rail services in the Northeast accrue not only to rail passengers, but also to drivers and air passengers. Rail serves to reduce road congestion by providing an alternative that removes vehicles from the road. Additionally, airports in the Northeast are some of the nation’s busiest, and the 6040 rail-air market share helps to alleviate congestion and congestion-related delays in the national air system. Rail provides an accessible transportation alternative if highway or airline travel is disrupted by natural disasters, terrorism or breakdowns. Rail’s importance was particularly apparent after September 11, 2001, when air transportation was grounded for several days, security restrictions were imposed at certain tunnels and bridges and rail was the only viable public carrier option for thousands of stranded intercity and commuter passengers. HSR K2 Competitiveness-EmpiricsEmpirics prove that railroads are the lynchpin of economic competitiveness and growth.DOT 12 (The Department of Transportation, “High Speed Rail: America’s rail legacy continues”, February 21, 2012, http://fastlane.dot.gov/2012/02/high-speed-rail-an-extension-of-the-american-rail-legacy.html |SK) In addition to having represented Illinois in Congress, President Obama and I have in common a fondness for one our state's greatest heroes, Abraham Lincoln. In particular, the President likes to quote notes from Lincoln in 1854 when he wrote, “The legitimate object of government is to do for the people what needs to be done, but which they cannot, by individual effort, do at all, or do so well, by themselves.” Lincoln went on to list some of these items, including “Making and maintaining roads, bridges, and the like..." Yes, our 16th President knew that transportation must be a high priority for a growing nation. In fact, Lincoln even patented an invention--the only President thus far to do so--that would help maritime vessels free themselves upon running aground. Lincoln's leadership in preserving the Union often overshadows the important fact that he chartered the transcontinental railroad that proved so vital to our nation's economic growth. He had a vision for American rail that would connect our nation from the sunshine and surf of California to what is now the Northeast Corridor. That vision was not shared by everyone. From the first mention, in 1832, of a possible line from New York to Oregon, the critics dismissed the transcontinental railroad as the fantasies of overheated imaginations. At that time, America had a grand total of 229 miles of track, and the prospect of laying 3,000 miles of track seemed impossible. Getting Congress to agree to finance such an immense undertaking was an uphill fight; the technology to build the line didn't even exist; and much of the territory the railroad would traverse was considered of no economic potential. But In 1862, Lincoln signed into existence the product of that initial vision, which eventually brought America thousands of new towns along the corridor, agricultural domination that we have sustained for more than 150 years, and a strong sense of national unity. So, yesterday, celebrating the anniversary of Lincoln’s birth (and the birthday of George Washington) on Presidents' Day, I remembered a President who loved transportation, with his words as well as his actions, and who understood its importance to our nation's economy. President Obama’s vision for High Speed Rail is an extension of that legacy. It offers benefits very similar to those of the original transcontinental rail: economic development along the corridors, economic competitiveness; and accessible connections among major cities and the communities between them. And it faces similar opposition from the naysayers who doubt this nation's ability to achieve the kind of global competitiveness we need to continue thriving. The reality is that high speed passenger rail is critical to continue improving the lives of our next generation. Squeezed between our burgeoning population and our limited road and airport capacity, it's no longer a question of if America will develop such a 21st century system. It is only a question of whether we can realize this vision in time. President Obama and I think we can. Several projects are already underway. Just last week, we celebrated the advent of 110 mph service between Portage, Indiana, and Kalamazoo, Michigan, along the Chicago to Detroit line – marking the first high speed rail service in the country outside of the Northeast Corridor. But there's still a lot of work to do. We need Congress to pass the high speed rail provisions of President Obama's budget. This train is leaving the station, and it's time for Congress to get on board. Directory: files files -> Answer True False 2 points Question 2 files -> Integer programming and game theory files -> 4 Integer Programming files -> Bpa vehicle Window Repair Scenario #1 task: Procure vehicle window relacement. 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