Is it me or has a lot of air escaped from the East-West Rail balloon?

After years of what amounted to an uphill fight, the Baker administration had pretty much embraced the concept of linking Pittsfield to Springfield to Worcester to Boston with a new passenger rail service.

There is still much about that project that is yet to be decided and many voters assumed the baton would be passed

I’m sure on some level it is, but a story in the State House News Service about the state’s mass transport woes and Gov. Maura Healey’s budget caused me a little concern.

In the story by Chris Lisinski, he wrote, “The budget also calls for using $12.5 million of surtax money toward the East-West Rail project that would expand passenger train service west of Worcester. That money would fund a project director at MassDOT, track improvements at the Pittsfield station and design of a station in Palmer.”

The emphasis in transportation spending will be on fixing the MBTA and according to the story, Healey’s budget allocates $186 million to it.

I get it. The MBTA service is racked with problems and the majority of people in the commonwealth live within its service area. Many improvements must be made.

My fear has been the momentum brought about by former state Sen. Eric Lesser and Congressman Richard Neal has been sidelined by the political realities the new governor faces.

I’m also very concerned about the design of a station for Palmer. For years Palmer had north-south Amtrak service because the more direct north-south tracks through Holyoke and Northampton were in great disrepair. They are no longer, as they have been repaired and the north-south Amtrak lines use that route.

I know people in Palmer have been greatly upset about this decision, although it makes a lot of sense.
The trouble is if we actually get a high-speed passenger line, those trains cannot be stopping at communities the size of Palmer. Now, if we don’t get a high-speed train, Palmer could be a stop, but the whole point of this discussion is to develop a high-speed system if at all possible.

Studies that have been conducted so far put forth the idea that the faster the train service the more attractive it is to potential riders. A legitimate high-speed train could not stop at Palmer.

In the State House News story, the governor is quoted, “We’ve had a look at all of our transportation projects right now. The key focus right now is workforce, as you can imagine, but part of building a vibrant, functioning economy is making sure we have the vibrancy and the connectivity in our public transit system.”

Yup, I’m sure she understands the importance of having efficient mass transit as part of a 21st century economic development plan. The question, though, is whether or not Western Massachusetts will benefit from it. It makes no sense to have a stop in Palmer as that would, forgive the pun, derail the high-speed nature of the new train line.

Cowabunga, dude

I’ve been a fan of Northampton’s own The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles since the characters were first published in 1984. I knew Peter Laird when we both went to UMass and worked for Kevin Eastman – the two creators of the characters.

So, I have affection for the home-grown heroes whose popularity is still strong with a new animated film coming out soon.

For the life of me, though, I can’t understand why the city of Northampton decided to allocate $20,000 of ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funds to paint four manhole covers to honor the turtles. It is apparently under the reasoning that it would help boost visitors to downtown.

The turtles lived at one point in the sewers, get it?

I’ve got nothing against public art, but $20K for four manhole covers that cars will drive over and snowplows will scrape? Look at how long crosswalks last.

Paint a mural on a building? Yes. Have a statue commissioned? Certainly. Not four manhole covers.

G. Michael Dobbs has worked for Reminder Publishing for 22 years of his nearly 50-year-career in the Western Mass. media scene, and previously served as the executive editor. He has spent his time with the publisher covering local politics, interesting people and events. The opinions expressed within the article are that of the author and do not represent the opinions and beliefs of the paper.