(H/t Taking Down Words) The Northwest Indiana Times has a story on the potential for privatizing the South Shore Line (railroad from South Bend to Chicago). As readers may recall, a couple of weeks ago, a story came out wherein Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District General Manager, Gerald Hanas, said that State Transportation Commissioner Tom Sharp asked him to look into revenue generating privatization options similar to the Toll Road privatization. The Daniels administration denied any such privatization intentions or desiring any such plans. Daniels denied the report as a “bad rumor.”
Now the board that oversees the NICTD will call a special meeting Friday to discuss reports that the governor’s transportation chief asked the commuter railroad to explore privatization options. Hanas apparently made a similar report to the NICTD in late September.
Board members will be able to discuss the issue with Hanas on Friday. And, Niezgodski said, the minutes from last month’s meeting will be approved so that they can be made public.
Sharp has not commented publicly on the issue, though The Times has made several requests to interview the commissioner. A pair of INDOT spokesmen did not return phone calls Monday.
“We have not heard any response whatsoever from the state,” Niezgodski said.
Seems worth looking into at least. Both sides can’t be right.
Saying something is a “bad rumor” isn’t the same thing as saying it is a “false rumor”. Our boy Daniels is as much a master of the half truth as Bill Clinton ever was. That is, what he says is usually literally true, but is designed to give a false impression (recall all the sweet nothings he told crowds in NW and SW Indiana about unifying the state on one time zone). By now the Daniels crowd has figured out that privatization of the South Shore would be exceedingly difficult economically, and both impossible and damaging politically. Even mentioning it is damaging. Hence the rumor has become a “bad one”.