Taxpayer Cost of Transportation Systems

Many are against HSR as it is a Federal Government program and as we all know, the project will be funded by our tax dollars, so why should we invest in this when we already have aircraft, airports, and highways; the answer is in the future, not the past or much of the present.

Most do not understand where their tax dollars are spent, or how much an item cost, or how much labor it takes to build something. That is because we go to the store, pick out what we desire, pay for it, take it home, and use it, without any consideration for all the materials, trades, people, and technology needed to produce the item..

Most also do not understand the residual cost of doing something or using something, and therefore do not consider this residual cost or who pays the bills for it.

So, here is a little lesson in USA Taxes: The USA taxpayer's pay for every inch of USA highways and the bridges, maintenance, snow removal, engineering, design, construction, patrolling, and such that keeps us going safely to our destinations..

From Allyson Y. Schwartz, Pennsylvania, Member of Congress

"Transportation and Regional Infrastructure Project Bonds (TRIPs) that would leverage private investment to provide $50 billion in new transportation infrastructure funding and empower states and local governments to undertake significant projects nationwide. TRIPs could be used for all modes of transportation, including roads, bridges, rail, transit, port and inland waterways."

"The U.S. Department of Transportation estimates that for every $1 billion invested in transportation infrastructure, we can create or sustain 30,000 good-paying jobs in Pennsylvania. Using that benchmark, the $50 billion of tax credit bonds under the TRIPs legislation would create 1.5 million new jobs nationwide to help repave our roads, refurbish our bridges and strengthen our transit networks."

"Our nation needs a long-term transportation strategy that combines the cooperation, ingenuity and resources of the private sector and all levels of government. TRIPs offer an immediate, bipartisan opportunity to move us closer towards reaching that goal."

Our Proposal is:

Vehicle travel seems like the way to go, you buy a car, keep it, fill it, and eventually sell it and that is the total cost, or is it…

Actually, the USA taxpayer is paying for the Real Estate to purchase the right of way, the engineering for the construction, the construction, the monitoring by the DOT (Department of Transportation), the monitoring by the police and fire departments, the maintenance of the signs, lines, guard rails, pavement, drains, islands, overpasses, underpasses, and the bridges, and most of this has to be rebuilt or repaved every 10 to 20 years. There is also the cost of limiting the air pollution caused by burning gasoline and other fossil fuels; this air pollution generates CO2, dirt, acids, and chemicals harmful to the environment, the water supplies, and the health of the citizens breathing the dirty air; these cost are 'hidden' but add tens of billions to the Bill the taxpayers have to pay each year. There are also the added cost of the anti-pollution equipment on the vehicles, and the cost of yearly inspections and possible maintenances. Industries like farms, seafood, fishing, etc., are suffering from the airborne and waterborne pollutants associated with vehicle and gasoline use.

There will cost in building HSR, but most will be eliminated and will save the users much. In addition HSR will be electric and can use clean alternative non-polluting energy.

Idea on how to pay for our transportation systems in the USA.. For each employee that drives to and from work each day, the company should have to pay $1.00 into a National Transportation Fund... This 'surcharge' (you know those things they put on us when gasoline was $4.00 per gallon and then never removed when it fell to $3.35..) can be used to fund the highways, airlines, and rails of the USA. That $1 would bring in about $160,000,000 per day every day of the year...

After all, we taxpayers have been subsidizing the rails, airlines, and roads for these company's profits for over 230 years, it is time that they pay us back.. We also can.......

Take 1% from the military subsidy, 1% from the Home Land Security subsidy, 1% from the
Farm Subsidy, 1% from the Oil company's Subsidies, 1% from the Coal Company Subsidies, 1% from the Cotton Growers Subsidies, 1% from the State Department's budget, 1% from the Department of Energy's budget, 1% from the Airline Subsidies, 1% from the Highway Funding, 1% from the salaries of the top 5% of Americans, 1% from the Corporations that will each benefit from the system, and you have a ton of money to spend on Building Something that can be expanded from Alaska to the tip of Chile and benefit nearly a Billion people and their job base...