Is now the time to propose HOT alternatives

Boy, that JoanA is a real show stopper!

Governor Warner and Gov Elect Kaine apparently have plans for spending the surplus on non-transportation items. (see below) This is REALLY bad when we are in a transportation crisis. This shows the extent to which the privatization mindset has altered everything in Richmond. We have been sold to the developers and it happened several years ago before anyone knew it. This is not just to bash the Dems. I know most Repubs are also for privatization including HOT.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/07/AR2005120702406.html

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Originally posted by raymond
[br]Well omaryak, you have been granted your wish: gas tax IS a cents-per-dollar tax (%) based on gas purchases. As dickboyd points out Virginia’s gas tax is 17.5 cents per gallon, a user tax, which means that as use increases and people buy more gas, more revenue will be generated. Individually, users only pay more tax if their use increases. Collectively, as more people register vehicles and buy gas for those vehicles it generates more tax revenues. I do not support higher transit fares, but that also is "user-fee" based. Those who use it pay the fees. In theory, if more people rode transit, the cost (and fee) per rider should decrease, which is what you have in cities where there is a high usage rate and mass transit is successful. This is as it should be: the users of the service pay taxes to support it.

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At face value, Raymond's comments are true. Remember we are dealing with transit math. Transit fares? Maybe 25% of operating costs and none of the capital costs come from the fare box. The bad part is that fedeal monies are used to fill in the capital costs and the other 75% of operating costs. That means the people in Indianapolis and Keokuk and Kalamazoo are paying part of the commuting costs of DC commuters.

At $0.175 per gallon Virginia tax and 20 MPG, less than a penny a mile is collected in Virginia fuel taxes. A really busy road will carry about 30,000 vehicles per day per lane. Roughly $300 per day per lane mile. The going price for a lane mile is between $1 million and $10 million. At $1 million per lane mile, it takes ten years of fuel taxes to pay for the road. At $10 million per lane mile, it takes 100 years. Life of a road is about 15 years. Some roads carry 10,000 or fewer vehicles per day. Too many numbers, my head hurts, I have to go lay down and rest.

dickboyd@aol.com

No one's a fan of paying more in taxes, but transit users in D.C. already pay the highest percentage outside of New York of their transit system. It's time for car users to pay their fair share for improvements – road and transit alike – in the form of some kind of higher gas tax. One idea has been to index the cents-per-gallon for inflation by making the tax cents-per-dollar instead. This would be one way to ease people into paying more taxes and serve as a stop-gap to ensure tax revenue during times when gas prices are higher and people drive less. Still, more money is going to be needed if we are going to build the new roads people are clamoring for, maintain our existing infrastructure AND build the transit lines that are desperately needed in our region's transportation system.

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Originally posted by Bob
[br]Just wanted to tap into the collective brainpower to get your opinions on whether this is the time to put forth a set of possible alternatives to what is about to be approved. In other words, things like restricting 395 to HOV only - no tolls north of Springfield. There have been others as well, such as SpongeBob's proposal that during rush hour keep things as-is with no SOVs but charge tolls during non rush, etc.

I believe the final final decision is in January, so there is still some time.

Comments?

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Meeting Financial Obligations


”The Governors take this action mindful of our obligation to assure the financial integrity of the nation’s postal system.”



Statement, by U.S Postal System Board of Governor’s in announcing

5.4% increase in postage effective January 8, 2006





The Commonwealth of Virginia is charged with maintaining the integrity and meeting the needs of the state’s transportation system.



In January 1987, the last time the Commonwealth increased transportation taxes and fees, first class postage was 22-cents, the state gas tax 17.5-cents per gallon and the federal gas tax 9.1-cents per gallon.



In January 2006, first class postage will by 39-cents (77% increase) and the federal gasoline tax will be 18.4 –cents per gallon (102% increase), while Virginia’s gas tax will still be 17.5 cents per gallon, its sales tax dedicated to transportation will still be .5% and the vehicular sales tax will still be 3% just as they were in 1987 – despite increases in population (20% ), registered vehicles (53%), and miles of daily travel (79%).



In January 2006, the cost of one first class stamp (39-cents) will be greater than the combined federal and state gas tax (35.9-cents).



After 20 years, the time for the Governor and General Assembly to get serious about meeting the state’s financial obligation to transportation is long over-due.





Contact Info

The Alliance Alert is a free online update on regional transportation issues and public involvement opportunities provided by the Northern Virginia Transportation Alliance. For more information on regional transportation issues and NVTA, please visit our website at http://www.nvta.org/.

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Northern Virginia Transportation Alliance
P.O. Box 6149
McLean, Virginia 22106-6149
tel 703-883-1830
fax 703-883-1850
http://www.nvta.org/



dickboyd@aol.com