PETITION AGAINST "ALL ABOARD FLORIDA"

THE RESIDENTS OF JONATHAN'S LANDING, AND OTHER RESIDENTS OF COMMUNITIES ALONG THE ADJACENT RAILROAD CORRIDOR, ARE FACING A VERY SERIOUS THREAT TO THEIR SAFETY, QUALITY OF LIFE AND OVERALL PERSONAL WELFARE BY THE PROPOSED PROJECT "ALL ABOARD FLORIDA". THE PROJECT IS SPONSORED BY PRIVATE INVESTORS, THE FORTRESS INVESTMENT GROUP.

THEREFORE:
We, the undersigned residents/members of Jonathan's Landing, Jupiter, FL, vigorously oppose the proposed high-speed passenger train service and the dramatically increased freight service that will heavily impact the 1225 homes in our community. We have several objections.

Picture in your mind a three mile long, heavily loaded freight train chugging along at 25 miles per hour just as an EMT ambulance with a heart attack patient approaches a rail crossing. The intersection becomes quickly gridlocked when the barriers go down. The ambulance likely will be delayed 15-20-25 minutes before it can reach the hospital destination. In fact, there is documented evidence that, because of a recent delay due to a bridge failure to close, caused a 45 minute delay to an ambulance carrying a traffic accident patient to arrive at the Jupiter Medical Center ER. The patient survived because the injuries were not life-threatening. Imagine if the patient was in the throes of a severe heart attack when, literally, seconds count.

The passenger trains (32 per day) and the anticipated increase in freight trains (28 to 35 per day) threatens our safety, our health, our mobility within Palm Beach County, our home values, our quality of life, our personal welfare, our costs of living and our future as Floridians. In short, the railroad tracks split in two the communities that lie along this rail corridor. Typically, east of the tracks is a heavy concentration of residences. West of the tracks lie hospitals, fire and police stations and businesses of all types, as well as more residences. These realities give rise to the circumstances which will create chaos to daily living in our communities.

We call upon the commissioners of Palm Beach County to give full consideration to taking swift action and announce their opposition to the All Aboard Florida project.