Now Charlotte is enjoying the type of economic development Central and North Florida can only dream about.
That is a bit of a stretch, in a state where Charlotte is by far the largest city. In Florida, Jacksonville struggles to compete for dollars behind bigger brothers in Miami, Tampa/St. Pete, and Orlando areas. When you look at dollars though, Florida gets a larger proportion due to the fact that it is the 3rd largest state in the Union, with a GNP that rivals most nations on the globe. I don't see us missing out on anything we don't need in the North Florida region.
We could stand to use the Sun Pass cards on new roadways and at the airport, but that would require planning and brain "thingies" by the current leaders....The former head of the Rebublican Party told me that all new major roads in Florida would have to be paid for by tolls (Sun Pass), and rightly so, pay to use it. We should have that along I-95 when you enter and leave jax. JTA would reap the money, use it on the rail.
I have no problem using rail, I just have a problem sacrificing needs today, for something not proven for tomorrow. There is no rail study that can prove we need to spend the same 180 million that the schools need NOW, for a rail system.
The best way to prove that rail can survive is the extend the JTA bus trolleys into the neighborhoods, that could use the rail now. Downtown to San Marco, Up and down 3rd street at the beach, Riverside/Avondale to downtown. Springfield to downtown. Have the residents prove that the rail system would be used. Good ness knows we could use the money for the school systems now.