As news comes out that Election Day could see some of the highest voter participation ever, backers and opponents of propositions are worried that Democrat voters in California may opt out of voting later in the day--such as after 5:00 p.m.-- if it looks like Barack Obama has won the state. If that happens, potential votes against Proposition 8, which seeks to ban gay marriage, and for Proposition 1a, which will help fund high speed......

Unlike the big papers in OC, SD and Sac, the LA Times is endorsing Prop 1a, the November ballot initiative that would give a boost in funding for a high speed train mainly between LA and San Francisco. You know, LA to SF in around 2 hours, 40 minutes: The measure isn't as big a risk as it would be if the state were footing the entire bill. The "backbone" segment from Los Angeles......

Via Streetsblog, we find a report from the Brookings Institution (.pdf) that outlines each candidate's positions on transportation. It goes over twelve issues such as transportation earmarks, the gas tax holiday, telecommuting and smart growth. However, what caught our eye was "View on Amtrak / Intercity Passenger Rail." The results show two extremely different points of view, which is a given, but nevertheless a fresh eye opener. “Obama has been a strong supporter of......

The California Chamber of Commerce announced yesterday that they oppose Prop 1a, the November ballot initiative that would authorize a $9.95 billion bond to partially fund the route between Southern to Northern California. A trip from Los Angeles to San Francisco would be under three hours. "There are other projects that mitigate congestion that should be a high priority," chamber president Allan Zaremberg was quoted saying in the Sacramento Bee. Usually, the Chamber is......

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a piece of legislation on Monday that changes the language in Proposition 1, the high speed rail bond. Now it will be Proposition 1a, but there's a problem: the voter guides have already been printed with Prop 1 language, not Prop 1a's. Therefore, an additional voter guide will have to be printed at the cost of approximately $4 million, according to Secretary of State Debra Bowen. Schwarzenegger, who is big......

What High Speed Rail could look like in Burbank | Image by CHSR Despite saying he wouldn't until the budget was passed, Governor Schwarzenegger signed a few bills yesterday that he liked. One of those was AB3034, which replaced Proposition 1 with Proposition 1a on the ballot. Both deal with making a High Speed Rail route between LA and SF with an estimated travel time of 2 hours, 40 or so minutes. The San......