I can hear the Phoenix light rail lovers and planning elites saying, “Deficit, what deficit?  We don’t care about no stinking $244 million deficit.”  Rome burns and Phoenix is cutting services (including bus and light rail service) left and right while raising taxes because of its $244 million deficit, but its investment in the light rail money pit continues at full speed.  The 4.8 mile extension of the light rail to service Phoenix Sky Harbor airport has a projected cost of $1.1 billion.  The Phoenix big spenders continue to live by the motto “its only money, but it’s not our money.”  The light rail  money is no object types must not know that Phoenix, Arizona and the United States are teetering on bankruptcy because they spend money they do not have.

In what appears to be an insult to American workers and businesses during these tough economic times, Phoenix will buy the light rail cars from a Canadian company rather than a U.S. company.  Valley Metro will enter into a $260 million contract with a Canadian firm, Bombardier Transportation Holdings USA, for 18 train cars and a maintenance facility.  That equates to $14,444,444 for each 36 foot long 53 passenger rail car.  I don’t know anything about the cost of rail cars, but that seems to be an extraordinarily high cost per car.

See “Phoenix unveils design of PHX Sky Train cars for Sky Harbor International Airport.”

See also “We’re too broke to be this stupid – Beleaguered taxpayers may finally put a stop to the sheer waste of government spending”