Jeff Moseley and Travis Kelly, officials with Texas Central Partners—the company leading the project—represented the proponents. Grimes County Judge Ben Leman and Texans Against High-Speed Rail President Kyle Workman spoke in opposition. After each side made presentations, moderator Mike Schofield accepted written questions from the audience.
As state representative of District 132, Schofield represents Katy and part of Cypress. He said the purpose of the community forum was to provide information on how the project could potentially affect the area and to get feedback from those who will be affected.
The proposed route, which was approved by the Federal Railroad Administration in August 2015, runs through the northern part of District 132.
Population explosion brings need
Jeff Moseley (speaking) and Travis Kelly (seated) represents Texas Central Partners at Mike Schofield's High-Speed Rail forum.[/caption]In Moseley’s initial comments, he said 1,000 people are moving into the state every day, and Texas’ current population of 27 million is projected to explode to 40 million in the next three decades.
“Our roadways are congested today and will grow more congested,” he said. “We can ignore the growth… or run we can toward it. We can be proactively involved and shape that growth.”
The rail system could carry 400 people at 200 miles per hour, with trains leaving every half hour, he said. The same system has been operational in Japan since 1964 with no deaths or accidents.
Texas Central would offer a convenience to travelers between Dallas, Houston and Brazos Valley and get a significant number of cars off the highway, Moseley said. Passengers could purchase tickets on their phones, have Wi-Fi on the train and be able to access public transit, rental cars and ample parking options at each station, he said.
Officials are also working with TSA and DHS on best practices, but promised passengers will not be subjected to the same intrusive protocol they go through at airports.
With ticket pricing varying upon demand, the cost is comparable to a rental car service, Moseley said. Not only would it save passengers money, but it would create 10,000 jobs each year of construction in addition to 1,000 full-time positions to operate the completed system.
The $10 billion private investment in infrastructure, design and construction will generate a $36 billion economic impact over 25 years, Moseley said.
“The last significant transportation infrastructure project is DFW airport,” he said. “That was about $700 million [to build]. Today, I think the airport’s worth maybe $8 billion.”
Rural landowners against rail
Workman said he believes sufficient ridership to sustain the rail system is not attainable. He argued that this project ultimately has a 99 percent chance of failing, and he fears it will come back to haunt taxpayers in the year to come.
Leman focused on the issue of eminent domain, which brought lots of Grimes County residents to the forum. He said major infrastructure projects like the high-speed rail must go through a rigorous process to justify the use of eminent domain, and TCP has made several failed attempts to work around that process.
“Texas Central Partners as an entity has been doing everything they possibly can to circumvent that process that validates a project and justifies the use of eminent domain,” he said. “In Texas, the end does not justify the means with eminent domain.”
To obtain eminent domain, he said, one must go through a state agency such as the Texas Department of Transportation or obtain eminent domain rights directly from a law passed in legislation, which is what TCP claims to have done.
Kelly said under the state’s Transportation Code—Title 5, Subtitle C, Chapter 112— TCP has eminent domain authority.
Moseley added that letters have gone out to landowners in Grimes County offering above market value for land in hopes that enforcing eminent domain will not be necessary. According to TAHSR, many residents have begun settling because of the lawsuit threats TCP has made.
Leman said the project will not alleviate Houston traffic as much as it will shuffle it around. Ultimately, he thinks high-speed rail conflicts with what is best for the public.
“Our government is not saying this project is needed,” he said. “This is pure profit-driven, with the goal of making money.”
Workman and Moseley both said they would be willing to discuss compromises openly at a later date. For Workman, several things would need to change before he considered supporting the project.
“We’re talking about checking the eminent domain at the door; we’re talking about protecting property rights,” he said. “We’re talking about ensuring that there’s no state funds ever—not just today, but that would ever be used. We’re talking about protecting the counties to make sure they’re not stuck with infrastructure improvements later.”
An environmental impact study has been ongoing since the fall of 2014 and will continue until January or February, according to TCP. At that time, final station locations will be announced to the public. Officials have identified the area around intersection of Loop 610 and Hwy. 290 as a potential Houston station location.
