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In theory, the idea makes perfect sense.
Gasoline prices remain high, the world’s supply of petroleum is finite, cars pollute heavily and are the source of numerous injuries and deaths. The skies are almost as crowded as the highways, with Americans crowding into airplane terminals before crowding into security lines before crowding into airplanes.
High-speed rail works in Europe – why not in the United States? Why not in Indiana?
Advocates of high-speed rail will share their dreams Friday at a Fort Wayne rally. But numerous obstacles keep high-speed rail from being practical in most – but not all – cities in the nation.
For one, it’s extremely expensive. The cost of serving one corridor – San Francisco to San Diego – is estimated at $45 billion.
For another, the trains must serve large numbers of people at each destination. While many residents would like to see a fast train link Fort Wayne and Chicago, it’s difficult to believe such a route could produce enough traffic. So stops would be needed, in South Bend, in Michigan City, perhaps Warsaw. Each additional stop means a slower train.
Some residents would like a Fort Wayne-to-Indianapolis link, but that is not even on the table. A Chicago-to-Louisville corridor that would serve Indianapolis is on the drawing table. A Cleveland to Chicago plan might or might not include Fort Wayne.
Another concern is safety. Hoosiers are, sadly, notorious for blowing through railroad signals. In the 10 years ending in 2005, Indiana recorded the third most car-train collisions in the nation, with the fourth most fatalities.
High-speed rail may indeed be an option on the eastern seaboard and perhaps in other highly populated cities.
The Northeast Indiana Passenger Rail Association, however, has a more upbeat view and will present it at Friday’s rally at the historic Baker Street station.
Pulitzer Prize-winning author Geraldine Brooks will speak this evening at the Fort Wayne Jewish Federation’s annual People of the Book lecture.
Coincidentally, Brooks’ latest release is “People of the Book,” the story of a rare Hebrew manuscript and the people whose lives it touches over the course of five centuries.
Admission is free and open to the public.
A Senate panel will hear a complex omnibus bill that would address a number of property tax-related issues and affect Allen County residents in particular.
Among its many elements is language that would have the effect of requiring the Allen County commissioners to again assume the obligation of repairing and maintaining all the bridges in the county. House Bill 1477 goes before the Senate Tax and Fiscal Policy Committee on Tuesday. The committee’s members include Sen. Gary Dillon, R-Pierceton.
Fort Wayne won’t exactly shut down this week, but if it seems like the city is less populated than usual, you’re right.
Thousands of local residents are off for Florida and other points south to take advantage of the local school systems’ spring break week.
Some fans regard it as a national holiday: Opening Day of Major League Baseball. It is Sunday, and the first game of the season is between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants.
The next day, April 6, most other teams begin play. The Cubs open their pennant-winning season on that day in Houston against the Astros.
The Reds are at home, in Cincinnati, playing the Mets.
The White Sox play host to the Kansas City Royals.
And the Cleveland Indians, managed by Eric Wedge of Fort Wayne, are in Arlington, Texas, playing the Rangers.
The TinCaps, the new name for Fort Wayne’s minor league team, open their season in Lansing, Mich., against the Lugnuts, on April 9. Home opener for the new stadium – Parkview Field – is April 16, against the Dayton Dragons.
It’s a cliché, of course, but one we can’t resist.
Play ball!
