The US is so far behind on high speed rail that a nat’l effort to catch up would: create hundreds of thousands of construction jobs, thousands of permanent jobs, give travelers a more environmentally friendly way to get around, & connect us all in a way we’ve never been before. https://twitter.com/catoinstitute/status/1360914692655509507

I did an interim study in in 2017 exploring the idea of high speed rail. Initially it was just to consider an OKC-TUL route. But cities across the state wanted to be a part of it. Small towns know what efficient mass transit would mean for OK’s economy & their bottom line.

The challenge, of course, is cost. Many leaders can’t see past the initial investment; can’t see what the ROI could be. Imagine rail along the major highways in OK & the opportunities that it would create for people who could use that commute time to get work done on the train.

I’ll never forget the single mom in OKC who said OKC-TUL rail would change her life because her parents in Tulsa could provide free childcare—shrinking a 2 hour distance to under one hour. That’s a life changer for one person, and there’s plenty just like her.

Or a less serious scenario: imagine, my @TheGridOKC friends, riding up to Tulsa together on the train to watch @EnergyFC beat a *soccer team* on a *baseball field* and being able to come home the same day without worrying about the number of times you visit the beer tent.

Anyway, the bottom line is this: the longer we wait, the harder and more expensive it will be. To be a globally competitive nation, & a nationally competitive state, we need better mass transit. It’s a fact. I wish we weren’t already so far behind. Get to work, @PeteButtigieg!