State Senators heaped praise on Florida's high-speed rail project Tuesday, touting it as a massive job creator that might not cost state taxpayers a dime.

The total cost of the first phase of Florida’s high-speed rail project could be more than double official estimates, according to a report released Thursday by the Reason Foundation, a California-based libertarian think tank.

A consortium of European companies is vying to finance and operate Florida's high-speed rail line between Tampa and Orlando.

While Florida's East Coast ports maneuver to tie in with inland logistics centers, the state's largest cargo tonnage port keeps growing on the West Coast.

The Port of Tampa recently completed the latest phase of  ongoing expansion at its container terminal, increasing the paved storage area from 25 acres to 40 acres.

Business groups say the Legislature's latest raid on the state Transportation Trust Fund will put a screeching halt to new road projects and throw 11,000 workers off the job.

To help balance the budget, lawmakers pulled $160 million from the Florida Department of Transportation's trust fund. But contractors say that's just a down payment on a bigger problem down the road.

"That equals $450 million in projects," said Bill Burleson of the Florida Transportation Builders Association. "There's a lot at stake here."