Now hybrids are being blamed for the need to increase and/or add new highway tolls! ``The interstate system needs major overhauls across the country and the federal government isn't keeping pace with the need," said Widmer. [President of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation] ``With hybrid vehicles and cars with better gas mileage, over the long term Massachusetts, like other states, will need to depend on tolls to replace the gas tax as a major funding source," he said. For complete article: http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachus...ax_hike/?page=2
Yes, the whole 1% of car sales that hybrids account for is sending all the states DOT's into a financial blackhole... Who do they think they're kidding, really?
Actually, someone does need to think more than six months ahead. Reliance on fuel taxes for stuff means when the fuel changes the tax base will change. Plan now for guaranteed tax income. That sort of thing. What will be interesting is if electric cars get really popular. How they get the extra money out of JUST the people with the cars, without just asking for the money at registration time each year, might be fun. Although, it just came to me that home-charging might be banned and taxed recharge stations might be the only way to go...
The highway infrastructure has been crumbling for decades now. But, hey, if you listen to the trucking lobby, the pressure that a big-rig puts on the road is actually less than what a stiletto-heeled pump puts on the sidewalk. Perhaps it's *pedestrians* who are causing all of the problems...?
Shows you how reliant the government and companies are on gas tax. They've been riding that rail for too long. Here, I think it was BC Ferries or the airport that imposed a fuel surcharge to cover the rising costs of fuel, so they say. Now that fuel prices have dropped nearly 20¢/litre, when asked about why they didn't lower their fuel surcharge, excuses galore came out. Riiight.. "fuel surcharge"
yeah... right... like the number of hybrids sold have actually made that much of an impact.... sigh... :blink:
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Pinto Girl @ Oct 12 2006, 12:12 PM) [snapback]331852[/snapback]</div> MY stiletto heals are so high off the ground I float on air so how could I possibly be wearing and tearing up concrete interstates? Really, between congress underfunding about everything including highway infrastructure and them 'borrowing' from social security trust fund for so many decades, then with junior's runaway 'budgeting' practices, isn't aparent that it will be in the national interest to RAISE taxes significantly just to cover decades-long shortages of tax revenues? Want new programs? ...
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(kram @ Oct 12 2006, 10:04 AM) [snapback]331694[/snapback]</div> Higher gas taxes would be great. They should reflect the true cost of gasoline, and therefore encourage the adoption of more efficient technologies. I'd rather the government gets their cut than OPEC! Tolls aren't bad either. It makes sense that the people causing the infrastructure demand and wear should pay (yes, including passing through increased transport costs for goods - an orange transported 2000 miles should cost more than an apple from next door), and modern technologies do away with fumbling for change at a toll booth. Now annual registration fees to support infrastructure maintance and expansion - they just don't make a whole lot of sense.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Pinto Girl @ Oct 12 2006, 02:12 PM) [snapback]331852[/snapback]</div> Wow, it's amazing how my brain shifted from cars to girls when I read this. Point well made Pinto Girl! Man I messed that quote up on my previous post. The quote should have been "stiletto-heeled pump". Concentrate, concentrate, ...
