It would be nice to live in a country that calmly accepted the need to tax itself as needed to pay for infrastructure and didn't engage in these self-deceptions.
2
We spend in excess of $600B a year on the military, wars, and the security state. Let me repeat that; $600B A YEAR! There is no problem with having the money to fix our infrastructure. The problem lies with our allocation of the funds we have.
Good Grief. There is no need for such complications. Raise the Federal gas tax 10 cents a gallon. Gasoline is currently $1 less than a year ago, due to the world oil price plunge resulting from increased US production. Call it a "peace dividend" or something, declare energy independence and let's build some infrastructure.
The federal excise tax on road use fuel was imposed in the 1950's to build the interstate system, which was completed in the early 1990's. The federal fuel tax should have been eliminated at that time. But as the spending to complete the interstate system was declining, the East Coast liberal states decided to tap 20% of the funds to pay for their mass transit system. Those states take out more than they put in but still require that rural states spend a significant proportion of their allocation, which has already been diminished by the blue state mass transit theft, on non road activities.
The solution is to repeal Davis-Bacon, allow the states to elect whether to spend the money on mass transit and completely eliminate any federal transportation spending on non transportation projects including: parking garages, converting abandoned railroad right of ways into parks, bike lanes (non of which belong on interstates).
The end result would be that there are plenty of funds available for road and bridge infrastructure.
The solution is to repeal Davis-Bacon, allow the states to elect whether to spend the money on mass transit and completely eliminate any federal transportation spending on non transportation projects including: parking garages, converting abandoned railroad right of ways into parks, bike lanes (non of which belong on interstates).
The end result would be that there are plenty of funds available for road and bridge infrastructure.
Please tell me what time of day the photo of I-80 was taken, so I can plan to use it then. For those of you not lucky enough to live in the SF Bay Area, I can tell you this is a picture of "no traffic"! Some of those cars heading south are at least 20 feet apart!
2
Welcome to the Third World, USA!
Thanks to the Republicans, to whom fixing crumbling infrastructure is apparently an unaffordable "luxury"!
Visit Canada or almost anyplace in Europe to see how transportation and infrastructure should work (and once worked in the USA)! Modern trains, subways, and trams that come frequently and are clean. Roads that don't look / drive like especially cratered parts of the Moon. (Not to mention public boulevards, parks and public spaces, and [new!] public libraries.)
Any sane person / nation should be ashamed of the numbers below:
"An estimated 140,000 bridges are breaking down across the country, and about 40 percent of the nation’s pavement has broken down to the point that it can no longer be tarred over but should be rebuilt ... But for years, battered roads, aging transit systems and overtaxed airports have been no match for Republican vows to never raise taxes..."
Thanks to the Republicans, to whom fixing crumbling infrastructure is apparently an unaffordable "luxury"!
Visit Canada or almost anyplace in Europe to see how transportation and infrastructure should work (and once worked in the USA)! Modern trains, subways, and trams that come frequently and are clean. Roads that don't look / drive like especially cratered parts of the Moon. (Not to mention public boulevards, parks and public spaces, and [new!] public libraries.)
Any sane person / nation should be ashamed of the numbers below:
"An estimated 140,000 bridges are breaking down across the country, and about 40 percent of the nation’s pavement has broken down to the point that it can no longer be tarred over but should be rebuilt ... But for years, battered roads, aging transit systems and overtaxed airports have been no match for Republican vows to never raise taxes..."
4
You are overlooking that Obama as well as a number of prominent House and Senate Democrats have vowed not to raise the gas tax. Like a lot of problems, there is more than enough blame to go around for both parties. Your attitude really demonstrates the biggest problem of all. For every problem feral partisans know that their child molesting, satan worshiping enemies in the other party are exclusively to blame. Blogs are full of, "Everything that has ever been wrong is the other parties fault, and my party is always right, and pure as the wind driven snow". Lets all grow up and get over ourselves. There are decent people who disagree and bad actors on both sides. Stick to the issues. Personal vitriol is the problem, not the solution.
4
If the East Coast wants to tax drivers of automobiles to pay for mass transit, let them. Do not pretend that it is a federal responsibility to pay for the NYC subways and buses or for the LIRR. NYS takes more out of the transportation trust fund than it puts in and Tennessee puts in more than it gets back. How is that reasonable?
NYC has been ruled by Democrats for decades. How is it possible that they are unable to pay for their own local transportation?
NYC has been ruled by Democrats for decades. How is it possible that they are unable to pay for their own local transportation?
1
Ole Twitch can cast doubt on virtually activity that would be deemed to be productive or useful to the general population. If it doesn't serve a special interest, of his, it's not worth consideration. I'm sure he's asking, "what's in it for me?"
5
"...virtually ANY activity..."
1
There's no excuse for failing to raise the gas tax to a point sufficient to underwrite maintenance and improvement of the nation's surface transportation systems, which means not just the highways but the passenger rail system as well. The trust fund financed by the gas tax should also be used to ensure increased resources for auto safety regulators, who now are starved for money, subservient to the auto companies they supposedly regulate, and treated like political footballs in the ugly partisanship that has become the hallmark of Congressional behavior. Gas tax increases will serve everyone well. They won't harm the national transport system; on the contrary, they will make it much healthier.
3
Why is it that the drivers of automobiles should be subsidizing wealthy commuters who take the LIRR and whose fares cover less than half of the operating cost and make no contribution toward capital requirements?
The excuse for not raising the gasoline tax is that there is enough money to pay for roads and bridges if the blue states didn't insist on red states subsidizing their mass transit.
The excuse for not raising the gasoline tax is that there is enough money to pay for roads and bridges if the blue states didn't insist on red states subsidizing their mass transit.
1
I am always surprised that in any discussion of finances for whatever program we have going, or hope to have going, the discussion never touches the source of the greatest national expenditure, the military budget. That is where all the money is. Let's use some of that. Having strong defense is critical but you should be defending strong roads, bridges and other infrastructure as a part of that deal.
3
Texas is dealing with its roads, they are using gravel instead of asphalt or concrete. Dust, potholes and lots of damage to vehicle is the result.Kind of like the third world infrastructure. Can you imagine what La and Miss and the others would allow? The states mare the last ones that should be responsible for these things. Imagine the interstates having been done by each state. One section is safe and fast another area is a gravel road with two lanes.
5
Texas is not using gravel instead of asphalt or concrete on their interstates. And squandering any federal dollars on pork projects like California's high speed rail to nowhere is a valid reason for not increasing the tax rate: it just gives politicians more funds to squander.
Why are we so concerned with a way to pay for it, PRETEND its a WAR, ........see..... Now we have PLENTY OF MONEY!
7
I remember when weigh stations were still open forcing trucks to stay under legal limits. Now with the trucking industry in control, overweight rigs can be seen out everywhere ripping up what's left of our highways. At some point it might occur to the beneficiaries of this present system that without viable roadways even their profits might be threatened.
8
This is ridiculous. Congestion at roads and airports costs us $20B / year. For rail, it's staggeringly worse -- $200B / year. One of every nine bridges in the US is structurally deficient... The list goes on.
On top of this, research suggests that the economic returns to infrastructure are 8% to 10%. Additionally, there are huge social returns (better lives by not waiting in traffic or dying when a bridge collapses) to infrastructure investment.
We should be spending an additional $200B / year on infrastructure investment. The 'one time $220B' increase is not a "major infrastructure program", nor is it close to sufficient. Our Congressional representatives are a failure.
http://www.infrastructurereportcard.org/a/browser-options/downloads/2013...
On top of this, research suggests that the economic returns to infrastructure are 8% to 10%. Additionally, there are huge social returns (better lives by not waiting in traffic or dying when a bridge collapses) to infrastructure investment.
We should be spending an additional $200B / year on infrastructure investment. The 'one time $220B' increase is not a "major infrastructure program", nor is it close to sufficient. Our Congressional representatives are a failure.
http://www.infrastructurereportcard.org/a/browser-options/downloads/2013...
8
One has to has to smile at Republican obstruction of a long term highway bill. This was an industry with which I was connected for a large part of my career and one very seldom met an executive in any part of the industry (contractors, equipment manufacturers, equipment dealers, raw material suppliers, et al) who wasn't an absolutely solid Republican. Passage of long term highway bills with large price tags was a given in this universe. There must be much confusion among traditional Republican supporters.
11
Perhaps the large proportion of transportation funds being squandered on: California's high speed rail to nowhere, bike trails in parks, bike lanes, parking garages, converting abandoned railroad right of ways to parks reduces the probability of anyone with sense agreeing to a raise in the tax rate. Devote the road tax to roads, stop federal funding for non-transportation spending, and find a better way to pay for big city mass transit than taxing drivers in other states.
We have a lot of necessary and brilliant social programs that allows people to live better and of course, all of them are worth a few bob. Of course, we pay for them via taxes. Personally I, being keen on driving car and motorbike, won't be very happy about new taxes on it. Especially considering the fact that the prices on fuel began to rise
How about this, for every dollar in contributions to our so called leaders, half goes to the Highway fund.
Shenanigans, that's all they're capable of.
If these people worked for a living, they'd have been fired long ago.
Nothing more than a gift to US corporations (they're people too!) who do business overseas. Your investment in the congress has a huge ROI.
Shenanigans, that's all they're capable of.
If these people worked for a living, they'd have been fired long ago.
Nothing more than a gift to US corporations (they're people too!) who do business overseas. Your investment in the congress has a huge ROI.
12
The Interstate system designed for 1950's volume would not consume as many maintenance dollars with high speed rail carrying part of the load in densely populated areas. The photo in Berkeley above must have been taken on some holiday morning. That stretch is a lot like the Cross Bronx in terms of unrelenting volume and delays. Bay Area highways are ten lanes not standing a chance. Southern access from I 5 to San Jose shrinks to a mind-boggling two lanes. Traffic is such a wild card the prudent driver from the Bay Area to Los Angeles on any schedule leaves hours before dawn.
Spending if at all the same way and expecting a different result.
Spending if at all the same way and expecting a different result.
8
Why is local transportation a federal responsibility?
It would be hard to go from one state to another if the roads did not meet or were not built to the same minimum standards. Ike built the Interstate system when it was discovered it was impossible to move an army based in Virginia to California in time to protect the West Coast from an invasion. Yes, once again, the American need for the ability to kill other people provided the reason for spending money.
Those who use and damage our roads the most, Corporations, should pay the lion's share of the expense, with a fair share of taxation. Furthermore, President Obama should propose to create a kind of WPA, with minority contractors and unemployed Americans doing most of the work.
11
Riders of mass transit should pay the full cost of operating the systems, rather than 50%.
Eisenhower, a Republican President, must be turning over in his grave.
25
You are correct. His plan was for the federal government to subsidize the building of the interstate system, and for the states to be responsible for maintaining them. He never envisioned that drivers in Tennessee would be subsidizing the NYC subway system and the LIRR for the wealthy Long Islanders.
1
If US auto and truck drivers don't want to pay for a gas tax then let the roads rot away! It is democracy at work!
11
The problem is that the people who can least afford afford it will pay the lion's share. It ain't McConnell and his ilk that drive 10+ year old cars with poor milage. Fewer billion dollar toys for the military might loosen up some already tax paid resources and RAISING TAXES ON CORPORATIONS AND THE GREEDY RICH WOULD BE MIGHTY GOOD TOO. They also use the roads driving from corporate jet to corporate jet.
5
This nation desperately needs to upgrade our highways.
8
This is the kind of result you get when people in positions of power are absolutely unaccountable to the people they represent. Gerrymandered voting districts and reliable partisan majorities render them far too secure in their elected positions. GM was branded a common criminal for covering up a defective switch. Congress is much worse than GM ever thought of being. Bad roads and crumbling infrastructure are responsible for far more deaths each year than anything GM ever covered up. Of course, they are far more implicated in death dealing intransigence when it comes to healthcare and a host of other issues too. Too bad Senators and Congressional Representatives can't be sued for their malfeasance.
27
Is tarring and feathering completely out of the question?
13
It's too bad that blue states feel like drivers in red states should pay for their mass transit.
Here's a simple way for Congress to easily raise hundreds of billions a year for infrastructure projects. Cut the federal tax code in half: from the roughly 70,000 pages it is now, to say 35,000 or so. Think of all the money we can claw back from the plutes if we stop subsidizing their race cars, dancing pet horses, and the like. While your at it, tax investments the same as labor. And lets put this thing on an automated schedule. Ever 2 years we can cut it in half again. If we start today, we can have the entire tax code trimmed to a reasonable size (a few hundred pages) in just three election cycles.
14
alternatively, the interstate system can be privatized. Assuming that reasonable contracts can be written (not very difficult), it will insure that specific stretches of road (that are used as opposed to little or not used) would be properly maintained and that new construction will be funded where it can pay for tolls (i.e., where there is enough traffic to justify construction as opposed to the political jerrymandering that currently determines where new interstates are built - like the famous $100 mn bridge to nowhere built in Alaska a la Sarah Palin's desires).
Say no to wasted construction for little used roads and inadequate maintenance for much used roadways - support privitization!
Say no to wasted construction for little used roads and inadequate maintenance for much used roadways - support privitization!
Yup, there's no better way to pay for government than by cutting taxes, particularly on corporations and the wealthy. OR, we could actually rigorously pursue taxes from evaders, place draconian limits on lobbying, and prohibit congress from adding pork to every bill that comes down the pipeline.
8
Privatization proved an expensive nightmare in Indiana, and tolls spiked. Taxation without representation. I assume you're familiar with the concept, yoda.
6
As long as financial services (vastly under-taxed - any problem with that?) generate 40% of GDP, everybody out in flyover land had better hope those bond traders can zip to and from their glass towers as efficiently as possible.
No problem at all with how we have subsidized suburban sprawl through the mortgage-interest deduction, beggaring the cities' tax base. Nor encouraged vehicle use through the delusive free lunch of corn ethanol - yes, I know, it's about what we expected, putting a corn-state Senator in the White House.
But it's appalling to read such a string of identical conservative dog-whistles - "Oh let's just make mass transit pay for itself" - which it would have done by now if we had tackled it in 1974 when you all were bent double laughing at Jimmy Carter's cardigan sweater.