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All Aboard!
Florida Awarded
1.25 Billion For High Speed Rail
Today, President Obama announced the
awarding of a $1.25 billion "down payment" to Florida to
build High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail System between Tampa and
Orlando and ultimately Miami. The immediate impact will be much
needed JOBS for our region and our state.
Tampa Bay and Florida are now poised to
lead our country into a modern, efficient and effective transportation
future by building the first High Speed Rail system in America. The
importance of this announcement, made here in Tampa, can not be
understated. This day truly indicates a turning point in our country’s
transportation system and it is starting right here, in our home.
The announcement today that Florida will
receive the first portion of the funds necessary to build the nation’s
first High Speed Rail system connecting Tampa and Orlando and later
extending to Miami and Jacksonville is monumental.
We believe we are ready for this challenge
and to lead our nation in this transportation effort. Economically,
Florida is a great location for one of the first true High Speed Rail
projects in America. This project will create real jobs, fast! The
combined Tampa Bay-Orlando Corridor encompasses 23 counties, 8 million
residents, 4.4 million workers, 338,000 business establishments with $40
billion in sales as well as attracting millions of visitors from around
the world each year, all in need of a more efficient means to travel
across this corridor.
We anticipate that we will learn more
details about this plan during the upcoming weeks. As it has been for
the past decade, we will continue to serve as good stewards to make the
most of this investment in our economy. The business community has been
a driving force behind securing major advances in our efforts for
transportation solutions for our region. We have already built a strong
coalition of local, regional, super regional, and statewide leaders who
are engaged in our transportation future and will continue to work
together to achieve more success.
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