Minnesota Infrastructure. Most notably Roads. (how much, buy, taxes)

[DannyBanany]

Originally Posted by golfgal

Then you must not have been to South Dakota and Missouri. Their roads and infrastructure are significantly worse then what we have here.

Are you kidding?! South Dakota roads are like BUTTER compared to the ones around the Twin Cities. South Dakota uses CEMENT and revamps any blemish that arises. I need an alignment from driving on 94.

[kurls]

The roads here have deteriorated to a very poor condition curiously during the tenure of Tim Pawlenty. Although that is my only frame of reference to this state. The roads seemed better when we moved here.

[Bignellyxx]

I was going to use an argument about gas tax based on the better roads and higher gas tax in Wisconsin. Then i realized we still have a rather high state gas tax. Now I'm just completely thinking it is too much gas tax funds going into the general fund.

[Danie123182]

Yes. Gas taxes should go to paying for transportation. School taxes should go towards paying for schools and so forth. You should also be able to go online and see where all your tax dollars go.

The twin cities area is a beautiful metro area and a great place to live and I understand that roads aren't ever going to be the smoothest because of the weather.

But when the roads damage your car to drive on them that is where people should draw the line.


Not only that but there has been cases where the roads were responsible for peoples deaths.

I guess its cheaper to pay the family members 2-3 million dollar settlements than actually fix the problem.

[knke0204]

Originally Posted by Danie123182

Yes. Gas taxes should go to paying for transportation. School taxes should go towards paying for schools and so forth. You should also be able to go online and see where all your tax dollars go.

The twin cities area is a beautiful metro area and a great place to live and I understand that roads aren't ever going to be the smoothest because of the weather.

But when the roads damage your car to drive on them that is where people should draw the line.


Not only that but there has been cases where the roads were responsible for peoples deaths.

I guess its cheaper to pay the family members 2-3 million dollar settlements than actually fix the problem.

Have you ever heard of the band Radiohead and their album Rainbows?
If you have, you may know that they released their album stating that customers can purchase it for whatever they feel like paying - either $1 or $1000. This album did very well, and in a time where record sales are plummeting and the music industry is dying, they went agains the grain and made some sales.

In an Regional Economics course I took, we explored the possibility of taxpayers picking and choosing where to allocate their portion of tax dollars. Almost a true picking and choosing, not by nominating "representatives" that will vote and make laws according to their constituents.

It was interesting, and a model that might actually work.

[Globe199]

Originally Posted by knke0204

Have you ever heard of the band Radiohead and their album Rainbows?
If you have, you may know that they released their album stating that customers can purchase it for whatever they feel like paying - either $1 or $1000. This album did very well, and in a time where record sales are plummeting and the music industry is dying, they went agains the grain and made some sales.

In an Regional Economics course I took, we explored the possibility of taxpayers picking and choosing where to allocate their portion of tax dollars. Almost a true picking and choosing, not by nominating "representatives" that will vote and make laws according to their constituents.

It was interesting, and a model that might actually work.

Is it being implemented anywhere? (Besides normal referendums.) I can foresee a whole bunch of red flags it would raise, but I'm curious to know if it's working somewhere.

[knke0204]

Originally Posted by Globe199

Is it being implemented anywhere? (Besides normal referendums.) I can foresee a whole bunch of red flags it would raise, but I'm curious to know if it's working somewhere.

If I remember right it was tried out for some school district referrendums, asking the taxpayers to put a dollar amount that they wouldn't exceed... For example

"School A needs X new computers in this lab, what is the maximum amount of your tax dollars are you willing to allocate towards this new lab?" So you would answer something like

Less than $X, about $X, or more than $X?

This model creates dispairities such as unpopular courses, activites and subjects getting misrepresented (like the funding for a new Clay Spinner, might not be very popular amongst tax payers, but who is to say that the Phys Ed Dept. get's more tax allocation than the Art)

There are a lot of red flags, but there are models that are being explored that will give tax payers more of a say where their money goes... Again, it kind of beats the heck out of the idea of Democracy or having elected officials to represent their constituents...But does that really happen nowadays anyway?

[tijlover]

Years ago, when I was driving a rental car around Mexico, in some of the rural areas, those that owned property adjoining the roads would go out and fill in the potholes with gravel or dirt, and offer a tipped-up sombrero to passing motorists for donations for making that particular stretch of road smoother.

But who knows, with Mexico! Perhaps they were constantly redigging the potholes and refilling them to make it appear they were made naturally!

Minnesotans might try a system like that?

[knke0204]

Originally Posted by tijlover

Years ago, when I was driving a rental car around Mexico, in some of the rural areas, those that owned property adjoining the roads would go out and fill in the potholes with gravel or dirt, and offer a tipped-up sombrero to passing motorists for donations for making that particular stretch of road smoother.

But who knows, with Mexico! Perhaps they were constantly redigging the potholes and refilling them to make it appear they were made naturally!

Minnesotans might try a system like that?

That's interesting. There has been plenty of debate of how to assign the costs to roads and maintenance. Sometimes the argument of "I don't use the road, why should I pay?" Makes sense. This is why there are toll highways, and HOV lanes or pay-as-you go lanes, such as MnPass.

An excellent way to make individuals aware of automobile usage is to have something that charges the individual for how many miles they use on a particular stretch of road, by having some kind of satellite tracker in their vehichle.

It could be managed by GPS that says for example "HWY 169 from __ to __ is approximately $.xx per mile."

This makes it so if you NEVER use the roads then you never have to allocate you tax dollars towards roads. Maybe if you bike to work within the city of MPLS your tax dollars go to safety, upkeep and maintenance of trails in the city for biking.

The one downside to this is that there is a gray area to who must pay for the transportation of goods and carriers who use the road....

[intmd8r]

Originally Posted by knke0204

Sometimes the argument of "I don't use the road, why should I pay?" Makes sense.
...

The one downside to this is that there is a gray area to who must pay for the transportation of goods and carriers who use the road....

Exactly. If you live here, you are buying goods brought in using the roads. You are benefiting. You get mail, also delivered to you using those roads. Etc, etc...