States vie for high-speed rail money rejected by Florida

Physics Today : Representatives from California and other states are lining up at Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood’s door to apply for the $2.4 billion in federal high-speed rail money turned down by Florida governor Rick Scott, writes Richard Simon for the Los Angeles Times . Scott turned down the offer last month, rejecting plans for a high-speed link between Tampa and Orlando and dealing the most significant blow yet to the Obama administration’s vision of a national high-speed rail network, according to Timothy Williams writing for the New York Times . Scott refused the money because he feared the project would be too costly for Florida taxpayers. Some, including the Republican majority in the House of Representatives, had questioned the allocation to Florida, saying that the money would be better spent elsewhere, such as the busy Northeast rail corridor between Boston and Washington, DC.