Obama, discussing gas prices, offers up expanding light rail as a solution. I’m a fan of the idea in general, but come on, man.

Here in Northern Virginia, the effort to get the Metro rail line extended to Dulles Airport has been a nightmarishly Sisyphian effort, discussed, planned, scrapped, re-jiggered, proposed, rejected, and now, seemingly finally approved in an on-again, off-again effort lasting for 40 years. Think about it – if it’s taken 40 years to connect the light rail system of the nation’s capital to that city’s international airport, how quick do you think Obama’s light-rail visions for the Midwest will overcome NIMBY objections?

He grumbles about the gas tax being a gimmick; but that at least goes into effect immediately.

(Interestingly, Mayhill Fowler, the Huffington Post contributor who broke word of the “bitter” “cling” comments , hit Obama for not mentioning this idea while covering him in Pennsylvania.

The Saturday speech, like all Obama speeches, turned eventually to greener energy, to solar and wind, but never to what lay at everybody’s feet–train tracks–and the need for more light rail in this country. Riding the Amtrak line, Senator Obama never mentioned–at least not in Paoli, Downingtown, Lancaster or Harrisburg–the need to revive rail as part of an encompassing new energy policy.

Obama has said he doesn’t read blogs, but maybe someone on his staff is reading Fowler.)

One other note — light rail helps in certain circumstances, but usually when you’re within an urban area of high population density. For suburbia and exurbia, getting from the home to work and everywhere in between usually requires a car. Light rail won’t help with the trip to the supermarket.

UPDATE: Also note that Obama offers the traditional lament, “We are the only advanced country in the world that doesn’t have high speed rail.” Yes, but almost all of the other advanced countries on earth are geographically smaller. Germany, Japan, the U.K., France, Taiwan – they’re all smaller countries, and so you can connect your major cities (and borders) for less money.

ANOTHER UPDATE: A reader wonders if the Paoli Rail Yard Superfund site is why he didn’t tout rail as the solution in that Pennsylvania town…