2/11: If you like traffic congestion, higher taxes, and special breaks for favored developers, then by all means support rail transit in Honolulu. Otherwise, the lesson to learn from Portland is: don't waste money on rail fantasies.

IT'S BEEN DONE BEFORE ELSEWHERE...PAST IS PROLOGUE.... CLICK HERE TO READ ABOUT PORTLAND, HAWAII AND, POSSIBLY, DEBARY?

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2/20:

Gopher tortoises delay some SunRail work

February 15, 2012 |By Dan Tracy, Orlando Sentinel

LAKE MARY — The small, gray gopher tortoise was about 20 feet from the railroad tracks, slowly making its way in the scrub and sand, its destination unclear on a recent afternoon.

That unsuspecting turtle, spooked into its shell at one point, and others of its kind have put a halt to any SunRail commuter-rail construction in the area because they are members of an endangered species.

And unless the weather is absolutely perfect — it has been too cool recently — the little guys (and gals) cannot be moved. So they remain holed up along a roughly 6-mile stretch of track from Longwood to Lake Mary to just south of Sanford.

That means — at least until the weather stays warm — crews can't add a second set of tracks as planned or clear the grounds for future depots in Lake Mary or Longwood.

Experts under contract with the Florida Department of Transportation estimate the Longwood-Sanford corridor holds nearly 200 burrows where close to 100 gopher tortoises live.

Gary Serviss, a principal scientist with Vanasse Hangen Brustlin Inc., said the turtles are drawn to the tracks because the sandy soils are largely high and dry and easy to dig in — just the conditions the species likes.

"It's a quite suitable habitat for them," Serviss said.

The tortoises, one of the oldest living species in North America, also are losing land to development, Serviss said. They are less likely to be bothered by the people working or living near the tracks, he said, and they seem to stay a safe distance from the rails.

The one spotted recently by Serviss and several people accompanying him was likely the equivalent of a teenager, still small but growing. It had left its burrow — No. 125 by the consultant's count — and appeared to be heading for another burrow, possibly No. 127.

Serviss said tortoises typically live in and switch between two burrows, which have a half-moon-type entrance and can be 8 to 12 feet deep and up to 30 feet long.

They are good at sharing and allow a variety of critters to cohabit in their digs, including snakes, frogs, mice and armadillos — up to 250 species in all.

The tortoises eventually will be moved — but not until warm weather stays awhile. According to federal law, temperatures cannot fall below 50 degrees Fahrenheit for three consecutive days after they have been relocated and released.

The rule, FDOT officials say, is supposed to ensure that the tortoises, which are coldblooded and become sluggish as temperatures drop, are not stressed by cool weather after the trauma of being moved.

 

For those of you who remember, when Sunrail was first sold to us it was all about traffic. What is it about now?

“This is all about putting people to work,” Mica said.  

Friday, Jan. 27, 2012

SunRail hits track with groundbreaking ceremony

By Patrick Johnson

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. —

After years of false starts and delayed promises, construction on Central Florida’s SunRail commuter rail line has begun.

The venture is touted as the piece to a puzzle that will help spur the area’s economy for decades to come.

“Since we have made the announcement, there has been over $500 million worth of development announced,” Mayor Buddy Dyer said. “It’s been announced in each case because of SunRail.”

Congressman John Mica says the project will create jobs instantly.

“Forty to fifty thousand jobs in construction, which is our hardest hit in unemployment category in Florida, particularly Central Florida,” Mica said.

The 61-mile SunRail project will stretch from Volusia County, to the northeast of Orlando, to Osceola County, to the south.

The first phase of the project will connect Orlando with DeBary, a community that is about halfway to Daytona Beach. The first 31-mile stretch is scheduled to be complete by spring 2014.

“This is all about putting people to work,” Mica said.  

The $1.3 billion project is slated to be finished in 2016.

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