Rail Line

Check out Dan Matthews "Cab Ride" through Watkinsville on the train -- not sure if he indeed caught a ride back from Colham Ferry to Morgan Manor via rail, but this is a neat video.

Our rail line has long term potential to be a great asset for our community. As rail/trail combo that would allow cyclists and joggers to travel from South Oconee to Athens, as a resource for our industrial area, as a potential commuter rail line (20-30 years from now) to Athens, etc.

For now, my kids enjoy watching when the train happens to come by. My wife Susan remembers the train running daily past the house when she visited her grandmother, and waving to it from the front porch. The only down side to having a quiet rail line are the old train cars that are stored on the tracks between Watkinsville and Bishop. Although some feature graffiti, they aren't exactly works of art.

Today the tracks are under a long term lease with Hartwell Railroad, which serves Southwire and the University of Georgia. However, if you could wave a magic wand, what would you do with the rail line?

Stimulus, Rail, and the Fallacy of "Shovel Ready"

Pete McCommons makes the obvious link in his column today between the stimulus plan and commuter rail. Rhetoric aside, I actually agree with about 90% of Pete's column today -- I just wish a whole lot more of the stimulus bill was going towards true infrastructure projects -- the rails, sidewalks, parks, roads, etc. that he describes -- rather than social programs and other things that simply further a social agenda.

The true handicap of the stimulus bill in terms of infrastructure is that it only goes for "shovel ready" projects, which are limited in scope and impact. Why is this the case? First of all, you don't get something "shovel ready" unless there is a good chance it is going to happen quickly. It takes too much time and energy. So, while E.H. Culpepper and others have done enormous leg work the Brain Train rail project from Athens to Atlanta, it is by no means "shovel ready." Nor would a 316 upgrade be "shovel ready." However, give us a year and the promise of significant federal money, and I bet this region could have both projects ready.

The sad fact is, with today's regulatory environment, getting something "shovel ready" can take years. Should the burdens of our own state and federal environmental requirements preclude local communities from making the best use of federal infrastructure dollars?