We covered the USA wide rail stimulus plan in our article Obama signals air-rail bonanza in the USA back in January but on the eve of the mid-term elections we consider the future of high speed rail in the sunshine state.

Florida High Speed Rail is a planned high-speed rail network. The initial service will run between the cities of Tampa and Orlando, including a station at Orlando International Airport, with plans to then extend service to South Florida, terminating in Miami. Trains with a top speed of 168 mph (270 km/h) to 186 mph (299 km/h) would run on dedicated rail lines alongside the state's existing highway network.

Politics or possibility?

Could the planned high-speed rail line between Tampa and Orlando fail to materialise if republican Rick Scott is elected governor? Scott does not want any rail system that would require indefinite subsidies. The immediate impact of cancelling the Tampa-Orlando high-speed rail line would mean that Florida would have to return the $1.25 billion grant it has received for the rail line to the federal government, which could then award it to states such as California that want it.

Advocates see the opposition as nothing but raw partisan politics, a way to destroy projects that, if successful, would stand as legacies to President Obama's stimulus plan."I guess it makes sense for them politically, and it plays into the fantasy that highways pay for themselves," said Richard Harnish, executive director of the Midwest High Speed Rail Association, a Chicago-based non-profit organisation that promotes passenger rail.

Alex Sink, the Democrat running for Florida governor, has long supported a high speed rail project. She says spending money on this investment will keep folks working and fight off the recession.

Rick Scott's campaign has given no direct answer on whether he would try to shut down Florida's high speed rail project if elected. Campaign spokesperson Bettina Inclán said, "Rick supports transportation infrastructure and modernising our transportation system. However, he is opposed to investing in projects that have little or no return on investment to the state."

"We have seen no reports that suggest the bullet train would be self-sufficient. The state has been subsidizing Tri-Rail (a commuter train in South Florida) since its inception and we cannot afford to be subsidising the bullet train as well," Scott said.

Scott has recently softened that stance by saying. "I would go through first and wait until we can see the feasibility study and see what it is going to cost taxpayers. Then I would make the decision."

Immediate and longer term future

With a high degree of federal subsidy from the construction costs and an appropriate pricing strategy to cover operating costs Florida could get the benefit of the high speed service at low cost and even a profit. Last week even more was on offer.

On 28 October 2010 the U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced that 54 high-speed rail projects in 23 states will share another $2.4 billion to continue developing America’s first nationwide program of high-speed intercity passenger rail services.

California received more than $901 million, including $715 million for the construction of new high-speed rail lines in the Central Valley and Florida received a further $800 million for the Tampa to Orlando high-speed rail corridor. The money is being awarded for a range of activities, such as construction of track and stations, purchase of new passenger equipment, and planning studies to develop new high-speed rail service.

This is a good opportunity for Florida to develop world-class high speed rail network, however, it is hard to envisage achieving that with only the 84 mile (135km) stretch between Tampa and Orlando. We believe the real benefits of Florida high speed will depend on the 240 mile (390km) extension to Miami and it is hard to see how this will happen on the political seesaw that prevails. We would also be interested in the views of our readers – have your say by placing a comment below.

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