Note: this is a cross-post from The Realignment Project. Follow us on Facebook.
Introduction:
To many, the decisions of the recently-elected governors of New Jersey (to reject Federal money for a second New Jersey-New York rail tunnel), Wisconsin, and Ohio (pulling the plug on Federally-financed high-speed rail project) seem illogical. High-speed rail projects spur growth, create jobs and tax revenue, they're environmentally sustainable, and the state doesn't even have to pay (mostly)! So why kill them?
The truth is that we shouldn't be surprised by these decisions - or treat them as irrational. We are living in an age of ideology, and high-speed rail is no less ideological than any other public policy. They're still wrong to kill the projects, but on ideological grounds.