Road funding
2012-08-14 22:32:48.387491+00 by
Dan Lyke
3 comments
Yeah, you knew this already: Victoria Transport Policy Institute: Whose Roads? Evaluating Bicyclists’ and Pedestrians’ Right to Use Public Roadways
Currently, only about half of U.S. roadway expenditures are financed by motor vehicle
user fees, as indicated in Table 3. The portion of roadway expenses funded by user fees is
declining, as indicated in Figure 2, because roadway costs increase with inflation, but fuel
taxes and registration fees, are fixed fees that do not. Vehicle user fees would need to
double to fully fund roadway costs.
Via Karen Lynn Allen's takedown of a troll over on sf.streetsblog.org which includes this table
| External Costs (Cents per Mile) (Litman 2009) |
| Cost | Automobile | Bicycle | Walk |
| Roadways subsidies | 3.3 cents | .3 cents | 0.0 cents |
| Parking subsidies | 10 cents | .2 cents | 0.0 cents |
| Traffic congestion | 4 cents | .2 cents | 0.0 cents |
| Crash risk imposed on others | 8 cents | .2 cents | 0.2 cents |
| Environmental costs | 4 cents | 0.0 cents | 0.0 cents |
| Totals | 29.3 cents | .9 cents | .2 cents |
[ related topics:
Politics Bay Area Automobiles Pedal Power Bicycling Economics Furniture Government
]
comments in descending chronological order (reverse):
#Comment Re: made: 2012-08-22 14:34:53.19027+00 by:
m
[edit history]
As I learned long ago, cost audits generally show whatever the auditor wants
them to show.
Sidewalks are fairly expensive to maintain depending on the area that they are
in. A cracked block in a sidewalk must be replaced. In many cities sidewalks
must be swept prior to 08:00, snow and ice must be cleared. Salting has a high
environmental cost. In other areas, sidewalks contribute to water run off
instead of absorption into the ground. Insurance costs can be high depending on
local law and accident settlement proclivities. A fall injury in Manhattan will
result in a settlement that averages 9x that of the same injury in upstate NY.
I have seen audits showing that paper cups have total costs of more than
Styrofoam cups, less than Styrofoam cups and about the same as Styrofoam cups.
One study includes the generation of methane from the degeneration of paper
(~25x higher green house effect than CO2), another doesn't. Similar
considerations on the flip side of the coin.
I don't trust any audit that I haven't done myself, and I don't trust those
either.
#Comment Re: made: 2012-08-19 15:52:26.345855+00 by:
Dan Lyke
Good catch!
#Comment Re: made: 2012-08-18 23:02:41.440983+00 by:
m
There are no costs associated with building sidewalks for people to walk on?
There are some streets so congested that even the people are jammed, never mind
any type of vehicle. Personally known to me are the areas around Wall St and China
Town in NYC.