Quote:
Originally Posted by Lakelander
I wouldn't call it a subsidy. Actually, that's all a part of the airport's master plan and would have been built if Scott didn't kill HSR. It seems FECI is asking for them to move forward with their own plan. Outside of that, they're being held to a higher standard than Amtrak. On the rail infrastructure side, it's their money on the line.
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Where is the money coming from? Does OIA use money from Florida taxpayers, or do they get money from ticket fees? Given the huge tourism numbers at OIA, I would guess the latter. Still, FECI wants to take money from the public - a subset of it - to pay for the expenses of their private business. That's the definition of a subsidy.
I'm also not clear on exactly what the plans call for. The Florida HSR proposal called for the rail line to go directly into the airport with a station at the terminals. Is FECI proposing the same thing? Or do they plan to terminate the service at 528/Semoran, with a people-mover connection into the airport? (For the record, I favor this plan, as it makes a downtown Orlando connection much easier in the future.)