More Streetcar bad news

It seems there is no amount of bad news that would convince Streetcar fanatics about the fiscal and economic incorrectness of their support for the Cincinnati Streetcar project.  Overall cost, cost per rider, the absence of any real transportation benefits, the list of reasons not to have done the Streetcar is lengthy and valid, but the biggest reason not to have proceeded with the Streetcar is that each year, year after year, the fine citizens and taxpayers of Cincinnati will need to lay off police and firefighters, and decide between picking up trash and cleaning the streets of ice and snow, versus operating the trolley to nowhere.


Regardless of where you come down on the merits of the Streetcar, this is a cold, mathematical budgetary decision that hundreds of green-balloon marching hipsters can't change, as hard as they may try.

Today, we learned that the City will not be getting a $5 million grant to relieve those expenses.  Nope.  These expenses fall squarely on the backs of the people who elected the people who made this important decision.  That's exactly as it should be.

We'd like to do a happy dance and proclaim "we told you so," but alas the matter is too grave for celebration.  Rather, we'll' let Kevin Flynn, P.G. Sittenfeld and David Mann once again explain why (i) this is not going to cost Cincinnatians a penny and (ii) why it was OK to tell the voters one thing during the election and to do precisely another one month later.