Who says the mainstream media are dead? The Miami Herald just finished a great in-depth investigation into the lies and deceptions behind a 2002 transit tax — and the rail transit disasters that preceded it. (Update: On the other hand, the Herald is cutting 250 jobs off its payroll.)
The Miami Herald wants you to know that it considered Miami’s Metrorail to be a white elephant way back in 1985, right after the line first opened.
When the sales tax was on the ballot, the county transit agency promised to use the money to expand the transit system, build nearly 90 miles of new rail lines, and “bring Miami into the 21st century.” As part 1 reveals, what they didn’t say is that the expensive rail lines they had already built were bleeding the agency dry, and it needed the increased tax just to keep up with basic expenses. Since the tax was passed, the agency has spent more than half the money on “routine transit operations and maintenance” and the city will be “lucky” to get even 2.4 miles of new rail lines (although considering how much rails cost, it would be luckier to get none at all).
