\n
![\"image\"](\"https:\/\/wp.baltimorespokes.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/11\/842866223_8490f33410.jpg\")
(by Atwater Village Newbie)<\/p>\nAnd they are basically asking why we can’t change this:
\n (by Atwater Village Newbie)<\/p>\n
Into this:
\n![\"image\"](\"https:\/\/wp.baltimorespokes.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/11\/5004152859_56fd14b2e3_z.jpg\")
(copyright: Lee from t.sina.com.cn)<\/p>\n
based on a tax that has not kept up with inflation nor has it kept up with improved fuel economy that puts in less money for the same wear and tear and the same demand for more space on the roads. (Not that it ever paid for all roads in full ever.)<\/p>\n
This comment from from Streetsblog Capitol Hill by Ben Fried<\/a> basically summaries the issues:<\/p>\n This is, basically, his entire argument: People just want to \u201cstay in their cars.\u201d We have zero interest in getting around any other way. According to Fred Barnes, we are perfectly content to drive and drive and drive, as long as we don\u2019t have to put up with all the other people driving. If you believe that, then his cheerleading for highway construction makes a lot of sense.<\/p>\n If being inside our cars is what we\u2019re really all about, by all means lets throw more money down the sinkhole of highway expansion. That will guarantee more quality time inside our cars. Then, a few years later, when we\u2019re in our cars but not enjoying it so much because the new lanes are jammed with traffic again<\/a>, we\u2019ll repeat the whole expensive process.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n But if we\u2019d rather spend more time with our families and loved ones \u2014 or, you know, doing actual work instead of commuting \u2014 maybe we should try a different way of building our transportation system. According to public opinion research<\/a> by Transportation for America, 57 percent of Americans would like to spend less time in their cars. Even with our highway-centric system, we\u2019re already voting with our feet: These days, Americans are driving less and opting to walk, bike, and ride transit<\/a> more than we were at the beginning of the decade.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n