The John Locke Foundation today issued a 14-page report attacking North Carolina’s plans for beefed-up passenger train service. It called on the state to reject hundreds of millions of dollars in federal high-speed rail grants, and suggested that intercity buses would be a better investment.

The report by writer Wendell Cox (see photo) seeks to validate warnings by state Rep. Ric Killian, a Charlotte Republican, that the planned rail upgrade will hurt freight railroads, weaken the state-owned N.C. Railroad and stick state taxpayers with heavy annual expenses – without providing economic benefits, easing highway congestion or improving air quality. ... [MORE]