Ohio Senators have passed a resolution unanimously supporting the effort to bring a super-high-speed transportation system to connect Columbus with Pittsburgh on the East and Chicago on the West.
The route connecting the three cities is one of 10 finalists in a world-wide competition. This route would allow Ohioans to go from Columbus to Chicago in a half hour or to Pittsburgh in less than 20 minutes. But Sen. Kevin Bacon (R-Columbus), one of the bill’s sponsors, says the legislation doesn’t come with a promise of money if it’s selected. “We’re not allocating state dollars to the project. Whether or not they seek public funding for the project in the future, I don’t know,” Bacon says.
There are a lot of questions about how much it will cost, the design and safety features of it and whether it could actually deliver on the fast speeds promoted. This resolution has no force of law, and sponsors say was meant to send a message that Ohio is willing to work to get it developed. A few years ago, Ohio turned away federal money for a passenger rail line to connect Cincinnati, Columbus, and Cleveland.
Copyright 2017 The Statehouse News Bureau
