I’m frustrated and perplexed by the extraordinary lack of intestinal fortitude and leadership of our elected officials. I’m not talking about global politics or world events; I’m talking about something very local: our rails or our trail.

For heaven’s sake! Why are the people whose livelihood I’m paying for wasting my time and money with their waffling? The state government had a mandate to review and decide the future of this corridor YEARS AGO! The fact that they are continuing to delay and debate is inexcusable.

We know that whatever decision they come to will cause both cheers and tears. Like everyone – including those who are adamant about a trail and those who are adamant about the rail – my greatest desire was a solution that would give us a level trail running alongside the rails. That would have given all things to all people. But in the many years we’ve been debating this, there has not been one proposal that shows this is possible. In fact, North Elba worked hardest to make it a reality and finally admitted defeat. So we need to choose and move forward.

I’m choosing the trail, and here’s why:

My dogs and I walk along the rails almost every day, so I’m very aware of how much tourist use they get: a few hours a year. If I’m generous, I could say that the trains run a total of 392 hours over those 10 miles of track. That’s three round trips at 45 minutes each way, for 87 days of the year. Three hundred and ninety-two hours out of a total of 8,760 hours in a year! That’s ONLY 4.5 PERCENT USE OF THIS CORRIDOR.

If there were a trail instead, the corridor could be used by more people EVERY SINGLE DAY OF THE YEAR. If we count only the daylight hours, that’s more than 10 TIMES the use!

Now those who favor the rails talk about tourist dollars. I’m all for bringing more money into our local economy, so let’s talk about that. I hear from shop owners about increased foot traffic brought by the trains. But how about our restaurants? Those that are here and those that are coming? How about our hotels? Those that are in process and those that are on drawing boards?

It’s the hotels, or the Regional Office of Sustainable Tourism, our chamber of commerce or a company like Great Range who will create and sell bike, ski and snowmobile excursions as part of a multi-day package. And then those tourists, who will be in town now for days instead of hours, can spend time in our shops after enjoying coffee, a drink or a meal at one of our wonderful establishments. This income opportunity benefits many more business owners and would be year round, not for just a few weeks in the summer. If we’re talking tourist dollars, I’m convinced there is a greater prospect of more dollars being left in this town with the trail than with the rail – to say nothing of the additional retail opportunities: bicycle shops, snowmobile parts and rentals, ski shops, etc., etc.

Now let’s talk about the other argument: future transportation needs. I’m a huge proponent of train travel. I lived in Europe for seven years, I experienced how well rail travel works, and I have a love affair with their mass transit system in general. But the UK and Europe’s real estate is covered with towns and cities that are very close to one another. In the United States, we are blessed with huge stretches of land between most of our urban centers, and nowhere more so than here. There is no chance in any future that we are going to get high-speed trains here in the Adirondacks. The U.S. needs to invest in more high-speed rail travel between such major hubs as Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Washington, Dallas, Houston, San Francisco, Seattle and Los Angeles. But not here.

And the argument about the cost of gas won’t win the day either. There is an enormous push and investment by the auto industry to develop and market more and better hybrid and electric cars. That’s where the money’s being spent. This country has a gigantic investment in roads, so no elected government is going to say, “Let’s allow our roads to deteriorate, and let’s spend our money instead on new high-speed rails in places like the Adirondacks.” And where would those high-speed rails run, anyway? Between New York City and Utica? Would there ever be enough riders to pay for those rails? And then what? They speed to Utica, and then take a 30 mph trip to somewhere else when those same travelers could get in their fuel-efficient car at a time of their choosing, leave a smaller carbon footprint and travel more quickly and more directly to their destination for less money?

Even if you love the rails, it doesn’t seem realistic to me that they will ever be more than they are now: a wonderful piece of history and nostalgia, and an expensive use of our tax dollars. Whatever the rhetoric, I don’t believe for a second that the train service we now have is truly, 100 percent self-sufficient. And I don’t believe the rail buggies are the answer either, for all the same reasons. They were a hit this summer because they were new. But who is going to pay over and over again to travel the exact same path when they can cruise along it for free with the same amount of leg power? Especially since the rail buggies are nearly DOUBLING their fare next summer, from $25 to $45 per person each way.

And last but by no means least: We have many local residents who don’t have extra dollars to spend on trains or rail buggies. Why are we making them pay for the rails with their tax dollars while denying them the opportunity to experience and enjoy all the beauty that at the moment they only hear about?

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Franny Preston lives in Saranac Lake.