[actinic]

Originally Posted by Driller1

Do not let the weigh stations beings closed fool you.

Just this week both me and my husband noticed many MDOT cops on the roads.

Any one of them can pull a truck over and weigh them.

And what fraction of a fraction of a fraction of trucks does MDOT pull over?

[Driller1]

Originally Posted by actinic

And what fraction of a fraction of a fraction of trucks does MDOT pull over?

Plenty.

I have been pulled over three times.

[animatedmartian]

Originally Posted by actinic

So long as trucks pay a proportionate amount in taxes as the damage they create I have no issue, including those coming into this state. But when I see weigh stations closed all the time you have to wonder if we're supporting, in effect, tax breaks to the transportation industry.

If Michigan is providing a tax break to the transportation industry then it's doing a bad job at putting more trucks on our roads.

[animatedmartian]

Originally Posted by impala096

Michigan has the 6th highest gasoline tax burden yet ranks dead last in per capita road expenditures. Where is all the tax money going? We're paying for a filet mignon but end up with a McDouble

Raw Data: Michigan is dead last for highway expenditures per capita | Detroit Free Press | freep.com

The "combined taxes" included in this map includes sales tax which doesn't go directly into road funding. It is only the 18-19 cent gas tax that fully goes into road funding.


Michigan sales tax: Where does the revenue go? And what could an increase mean for road funding? | MLive.com

[magellan]

Originally Posted by impala096

Michigan has the 6th highest gasoline tax burden yet ranks dead last in per capita road expenditures. Where is all the tax money going? We're paying for a filet mignon but end up with a McDouble

Raw Data: Michigan is dead last for highway expenditures per capita | Detroit Free Press | freep.com

That Freep census stat was from 2011, when Michigan was still in the death throes of its worst recession in history. Fuel tax revenues may have been down because a) a lot of people out of work not driving around b) a lot fewer trucks driving goods around.

Also, just because something has a higher tax "rate" doesn't mean you'll get higher revenue. If whatever it is you're taxing is consumed less, than you get a lower revenue. I really don't expect a reporter at today's newspapers to grasp that simple concept though.

Nobody cares that we have the 6th highest gas tax rate in the country. If we had the 6th worst education system in the country, like Georgia or North Carolina, then you should be worried. That's hard to fix.

[magellan]

Originally Posted by animatedmartian

The "combined taxes" included in this map includes sales tax which doesn't go directly into road funding. It is only the 18-19 cent gas tax that fully goes into road funding.


Michigan sales tax: Where does the revenue go? And what could an increase mean for road funding? | MLive.com

Exactly.

[ram2]

Originally Posted by impala096

Michigan has the 6th highest gasoline tax burden yet ranks dead last in per capita road expenditures. Where is all the tax money going? We're paying for a filet mignon but end up with a McDouble

Raw Data: Michigan is dead last for highway expenditures per capita | Detroit Free Press | freep.com

Exactly. Notice how Ohio has better roads with less money. Also notice how Ohio can fund I-75 road repairs but Michigan cannot.

When Engler raised the state gas tax, the roads were supposed to get fixed but never did.

[animatedmartian]

Originally Posted by ram2

Exactly. Notice how Ohio has better roads with less money. Also notice how Ohio can fund I-75 road repairs but Michigan cannot.

When Engler raised the state gas tax, the roads were supposed to get fixed but never did.

Ohio's gas tax is 28 cents. There's no other taxes that contribute to road funding.

[impala096]

Ohio is a good comparison. According to the American Petroleum Institute, Ohio drivers are taxed 46.4 cents on a gallon of gas while Michigan drivers are taxed 57.4 cents. How much of the money actually ends up back in transportation?

Ohio = 46.4 cents of 46.4 cents (100%)
Michigan = 37.4 cents of 57.4 cents (65%)

Ohio drivers are taxed 11 cents less yet their per-capita funding for highway construction and repairs is 39% higher than Michigan ($154 in Michigan vs. $214 in Ohio).

[teachbeach]

Along the same line, why can't we fix roads with a better material? There are other states and countries with the weather conditions like or worse than ours and their roads don't seem to break down as quickly as they do here. It seems to me that we should be looking at different surface composites that can handle the weather; water, snow, heat, freezing, frost. Instead of "patch, patch, patch" let's go back and spend the money and do it correctly so we aren't having to go back and redo it 2 years later.

As for those weigh stations...I have driven many miles in this state and have never seen a truck/bus/trailer being weighed or pulled over anywhere. I wondered why we even had the stations. In other states I've seen traffic back ups and long lines of vehicles going through the stations, with enforcement officers tagging/ticketing those who are not in compliance. One state even weighs tour buses! The 11 axle 44 wheel vehicles can't be good for the roads....maybe they should be paying a road tax for their excess tonnage?