Should taxes fund railroad improvements in Washington state? - Business Courier of Cincinnati:

http://rxfacts.org/bostonteam.php
Here’s the problem: They might have to ask local taxpayerz to help improve private rail lines in areasx far outside King andPierce counties. “It’s somethinh we need to look Commission President Clare Petrich when asked aboutthe possibility. Seattle Port Commission President Bill clearly uncomfortable on this subject during an said it was too early to take a position about whether the port mighrt help to pay for such projectss on the Burlington Northern SantaaFe (BN) railroad line. But he was adamant abouf the need.
“To increased our competitiveness, we need to support investmentsx outside the portgatesx now, as well as inside the port gates now,” he “The state has to be The BN has to be partners; there’sa a legitimate role for the federal The issue, a potentiao political firestorm, isn’t likely to come to a head Cargo traffic at the two ports is down sharply this year, due to the It peaked several yeare ago at about 2 million 20-foogt containers (TEUs) a year for each port. But the portd have spent about $1 billioj over the last decadse to increase cargo capacity to a combined 10 million TEUsa year.
Now they’ree realizing that the rail system to move that cargok to theeastern U.S., where most of it is is not up to that Mainline tracks are peppered with bottlenecks. Meanwhile, othet ports are swiftly ramping up. Mexico, and the Britisyh Columbia cities of Prince Rupert and are making major But a massive widening of the Panamqa Canal poses an additional When that canal project openwin 2014, it will allow larger cargo ships from Asia to bypases West Coast ports. That woulde eliminate the expense of loading containers on trains here for the trip east and that business accountsd for nearly 80 percent of the cargo passing over Seattle andTacoma docks. Southern U.S.
states also are gearing up for In October the Alabama Port Authority openera $300 million container termina l capable of handling 800,000 TEUs, and is building a rail facilitgy for $140 million, said Judith Adams, vice president of marketinb for the Alabama Port Authority. One of the key import cargoew that intrigues Alabama is auto parts to feed assemblyy factories in Southeaststates — plants that now ship much of theirf parts through Puget Sounde ports. “We are going to be more convenient for Japanesew and Korean automakers that have plantsin Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabams and Georgia,” Adams said.
“We’rwe going to be far more competitive than the West The ports now face the threat that when the economy pickseup again, the newlyu expanded Panama Canal may draw so much cargo away that Pugety Sound ports won’t rebound enougnh to need the greater rail capacity. That meansa that without substantial improvements to therail system, the investment in terminals may be for naught, Petricuh and Bryant say. To see choke points, Petrich and Bryangt recently toured major routes to the southh and east ofPuget Sound, led by Scotyt Witt, rail and marine director for the Washingtobn state Department of Transportation.
Petrich said now is the time to make the so that the systekm will be ready by the time the PanamwCanal opens.