Dear KTFC Members & Friends:
Folks, you may recall seeing periodic news articles in recent months about the idea of building a hyperloop across Pennsylvania. With emerging technology, a hyperloop could whisk cargo between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia as fast as 700 miles per hour, which would take about a half-hour.
With a $2 million state allocation, our friends at the PA Turnpike Commission have been tasked with undertaking a feasibility study, to be completed next April. Last week, folks in Ohio released their 1½-year study, which concluded such a project connecting Chicago, Cleveland and Pittsburgh is feasible, and of great economic benefit.
Ohio findings include:
- Operations will require no subsidies.
- More than 900,000 jobs will be created over 25 years.
- Tens of billions of dollars in economic benefits throughout the region will include increased real estate values, wages, and expanded tax base growth over that same period.
- By taking trucks off the road and planes out of the air, it would decrease carbon emissions by 143 million tons.
Ohio benefits from being relatively flat along the projected hyperloop path. In Pennsylvania, our hilly terrain could prove to be more of a challenge.
Be of Good Cheer,
— The Wolff
TRANSPORTATION ISSUE UPDATE
- Here’s a link to the news release summarizing the Ohio hyperloop study.
- Governor Wolf announced the approval of 141 new projects that are to receive a total of $79 million from the Multimodal Transportation Fund. These transportation infrastructure projects are in 42 counties.
- According to the Pennsylvania Litter Research study, released this week, there are about 500 million pieces of litter scattered along the Commonwealth’s roads.
- With the imminent expiration of the federal FAST Act transportation measure, several states, including Pennsylvania, are facing large potential losses in funding.
- Congressman Conor Lamb (D-Mount Lebanon) was named to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, replacing the late Elijah Cummings. The committee oversees highways, bridges, aviation, railroads and water transportation.
- As a result of the recent southeastern PA county elections, Democrats will soon be taking control of SEPTA for the first time in the agency’s history.