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Objector claim: <br /> All Aboard Florida (AAF) will destroy property values and quality of life throughout the <br /> Treasure Coast. <br /> Analysis of the facts reveals: <br /> Silencing train horns, reducing train vibration and noise, reducing train transit times through <br /> crossings, vastly increasing the safety of road crossings, and laying the foundation for future <br /> local transit stops are characteristics that historically increase both property values and quality <br /> of life. A Booz-Allen study' revealed: <br /> "Rail transit shows positive correlation to property values to areas where the access <br /> provided by the transit service is valued. This is the case for both the high growth, <br /> higher valued districts in Miami and the lower income groups in suburban Atlanta." <br /> Objectors fail to consider the positive benefits of having better access to commerce, sports, <br /> arts, universities, medical facilities and professional services in urban centers served by AAF. <br /> Also ignored are the benefits of making commercial enterprises and cultural attractions of the <br /> Treasure Coast more accessible to regional populations of urban area, particularly those in <br /> the Orlando area who would find attractive a weekend near the ocean for a cultural event that <br /> offered them modern transportation, event tickets, and a choice of accommodations and <br /> restaurants. <br /> Concerns that adding 32 passenger trains to the 14 daily freight trains will lower property <br /> values, create problems for emergency responders, create a nightmare of traffic congestion <br /> and lower quality of life are not justified by facts and are rooted in the incorrect assumption <br /> that road closures and noise will increase to unprecedented levels. <br /> Analysis of historical and anticipated train traffic not only shows objections to be unfounded, it <br /> reveals future typical combined daily road closure times for all trains will be about 7 minutes. 4 <br /> seconds less than typically experienced for the 24 daily freight trains that operated in 2006.2 <br /> Have property values increased between 2006 and today as the number of daily freight trains <br /> decreased by 42%to just 14? No, they have not. <br /> Then why should property values decrease if the effects of adding 32 very short fast AAF <br /> trains will not increase the level of road closures to that experienced in 2006? <br /> Conclusions: <br /> AAF will not adversely affect property values which, in fact, should actually increase with <br /> safety and Quiet Zone improvements. In areas near a future transit station, property values <br /> could well increase dramatically. Quality of life will be improved if for no other reason than <br /> AAF creating improvements that make it easy for and inexpensive for communities to obtain <br /> Quiet Zones to silence train horns. AAF will not increase crossing closures to a degree that <br /> would cause traffic congestion or create significant delays for emergency responders. <br /> June 23, 2015 Page 3 of 12 <br /> /12-3 <br />