It is election time once again, as Americans are weeks away from deciding a new President and making their voices heard on a number of hiring and policy decisions. From now until the election, ValleyVue will endeavor to introduce the issues, and will announce its opinion on most of the decisions.

ValleyVue is a blog dedicated to the observation of the development of the Central Valley of California. So, it should come as no surprise that the first, and possibly most important issue on the ballot as far as Central California development far into the future concerns High Speed Rail.

Proposition 1A is supported by economists, politicians, transportation planners, and future riders throughout California. However, as even supporters of 1A admit, similar plans to build rail throughout California have been defeated in previous elections. Now, with a proposition dedicated solely to High Speed Rail (as opposed to a general transportation bill), proponents are hopeful this will finally kick start the technology in California.

High Speed Rail has the potential to be a huge boost to the residents of the Valley. Cities such as Merced, Fresno, Stockton, Tulare, and Bakersfield will be served by an airport style station that will deliver passengers to the population centers of the Bay Area and Los Angeles. Depending on how the program progresses, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Diego, Oakland, and other cities will be linked. Virtually all of California's major cities will receive service or be near a station, which will allow transportation from LA to the Bay in about 2 hours.

Whereas travellers throughout the Central Valley now need to drive hours through LA commuter traffic to get to Disneyland or Sea World, they may someday be able to ride the train quickly to their destination cities. A Fresno Grizzlies player will be able to board a train and get to San Francisco in an hour and twenty minutes when they are promoted to the big leagues.

Once built, High Speed Rail will run through California as long as the service is viable. Now, is it? Airlines and Airports have said they support the addition of High Speed Rail to California's transportation infrastructure. Air transportation welcomes Rail as a way of alleviating the crowded runways at state airports. Rail fares will be comparable to airline fares, and in most cases, cheaper. If the stations are connected to major attractions or local transportation infrastructure, commuters may indeed use the Rail on a daily basis. Can you imagine the possibility of living in Bakersfield and commuting daily to Los Angeles, in less than an hour? The costs are somewhat prohibitive for that, but that's not such a bad thing. Seems that it would be a problem if it lengthened the distance to which commuting is possible.

One of the reasons citizens philosophically come together to form a union is to be able to achieve what no individual could. It is also a way to complete a project that no business would begin--one that benefits the public with its mere existence more so than by its number of customers. High Speed Rail is such a project. This is a project that promotes the general welfare of the state. Do we hold off because the economy is bad or the budget is in trouble? We cannot afford to wait. High Speed Rail, in its construction alone, will employ thousands. In its completion, some project close to half a billion jobs linked to high speed rail in California, jobs that "cannot be outsourced." It will cost money at the outset, but it is no doubt worth it.