High speed rail advocates have been wringing hands wondering where new House Transportation Chair Jim Mica will land on high speed rail funding and policy. He's expressed support for the NE corridor service, but has questioned high speed rail funding and in particular, start-up corridors including Florida's. He's also questioned the transparency of USDOT's grant process.

But Tuesday Rep. Mica expressed support for constructing a high-speed rail system between Orlando and Tampa. The caveat is that the funding shortfall should be provided by the private sector and not state government.

Mica also referred to Amtrak as "the country's Soviet-style train system."

I think Mica's support for the NE Corridor and the Orlando-Tampa project can leave us cautiously optimistic about Mica's potential support for the Amtrak Cascades service. Ridership has grown continuously over time and while there's not a lot of private funding, the states have contributed significant support. And the service has proven to generate tourism and related spending.

"Mica supports billion-dollar high-speed rail in Florida, with a caveat," Florida Times-Union