Infrastructure - How do we fix it? (Corporate Profits, interstate, leader)

[Kode]

Originally Posted by thecoalman

If you want to solve this problem this is what you do, first and foremost you have whatever transportation method it is support itself. If that means raising the fuel tax or the fares for mass transit then so be it.

That puts the burden largely on those who are already stressed to the breaking point. They are at the breaking point because although productivity and business profits have risen greatly, most of those benefits went to the greedy top. So the first thing to do to generate the needed funding is to claw back some of that money by raising top bracket taxes and even create a new bracket or two.

Specifically for roads and bridges you eliminate all the taxes and fees that are in place now accept for the administration costs

Inconsistencies and confusion are raising their ugly heads here. You say eliminate fees except for administration costs. The two are opposites.

implement a per mile tax based on the weight of the vehicle. This should not affect your average motorist that much but by basing it on weight it's will drastically affect the trucking industry.

That's not a bad idea but it wouldn't generate enough revenue to fund all the work that needs to be done. So this should be put in place at some point to maintain what gets fixed once it's fixed.

What will happen is shippers are going to start looking to rail in particular for long haul freight.

Sure, they will look for ways to keep shipping costs as low as they can. They will escape as much of the "per mile tax" (which will be difficult and costly to implement) as they can. But the real beneficiaries of the problems we now have will not all be affected by this. A top bracket tax increase will do the job best.

The cost of goods will rise however those increased costs will be spread over the entire population instead of just motorists who now subsidize everyone else.

First of all, the cost of goods is not determined primarily by the cost of production and marketing. Pricing is determined by what the market will bear. They (producers) are already charging prices that well exceed the costs involved. Secondly your tax idea will be a disproportionate burden to those who drive farther to work or who have other obligations like maybe a parent or an adult child living a distance and who has a medical condition and needs regular assistance. There are logically hundreds of other examples of this type. They will bear more of the burden than those who can afford to pay more without it harming their lifestyle.

[Snowball7]

We need a totally new transportation paradigm, especially in the big cities.
Smaller vehicles, more automation, less footprint, less dangerous.

[Kode]

Originally Posted by jetgraphics

As some have already noted, get government out of the infrastructure business.
It makes no sense to have partisan politics and public budgets involved.
You can't hold anyone responsible, and the only remedy for mistakes is to burden the taxpayer with the costs.
Such a system is a recipe for disaster - over and over.

Government may be acceptable for securing rights and defending against enemies, but when it comes to operating services and infrastructure - EGADS!

This is entirely illogical. Infrastructure is of importance and benefit to the entire society as a whole. There isn't a person who doesn't benefit from it. Good, solid, modern infrastructure is a national asset. Hence it is precisely the job of government to attend to it and everyone should be part of the solution to this problem, therefore.

Our infrastructure has been neglected for so long that it is now a national disgrace and will therefore be a very expensive thing to fix, update, and modernize. The costs, therefore, should not and cannot be laid at the feet of a section of society. It must be paid for on a national basis with federal legislation with provisions for states to participate and take the effort farther in their state if desired (as most federal legislation does).

[fisheye]

Originally Posted by bklynkenny

I support this. All highways should be tolled. Gas taxes should be high enough to cover local roads. Fares for public transportation should be high enough to cover capital construction, operations and maintenance.

All of this talk about funding; but nothing about proficiency. You have to figure out how to plug the black hole. Government mentality is that if I don't spend it; I loose it. Our money is not theirs to squander.

There are no easy solutions to a very difficult problem. In my state of PA we have some contractors that have gotten more than their fair share of State jobs. Like: James D. Morrissey Inc. – Construction, Ready Mix Concrete, Crushed Stone, Asphalt, Sand & Gravel – James Morissey Construction. But; like their website states; they own the quarries. It is almost impossible for another contractor to come into 'their' territory and compete. Our State simply does not allow companies to just start moving mountains - which this company has already done. Their company has also not invested in a modern asphalt plants like the Tilcon plants in NY, NJ, CN, and other states: Tilcon New York -- Aggregates, Asphalt, Construction, Paving, Recycle. Going back to the emails I exchanged with the TN head of Highway Construction; to lay the best pavement you have no seems. Unless the asphalt plant can keep up with the pavers; you will have seems and bumps.

So how do we 'fix' this system? Morrissey repaved five miles of I-80 in the 1990's in my County and one to two months later potholes opened up. I complained to my local State Representative at that time. I reminded him, that if it was our driveway; we would take the paver to court - nothing was done and our State did the pothole repairs!

[rbohm]

Originally Posted by Kode

Wrong. Is the military screwed up or is it the strongest, best in the world? Is the post office screwed up or is postage cheaper and as reliable as FedEx and UPS? Is Medicare more expensive than private insurance? How screwed up is your fire department?

Reagan started the lies about the problem being government and the right just swallowed it with no thought. It's BS!

wow, you found a few things that government does well. note however that fire departments are LOCAL not federal.

so lets let the feds do what the feds do well, and keep them out of everything else. the minimum wage for instance, a one size fits all minimum wage doesnt work. minimum wages should be a state issue, not a federal one. health insurance should also be a state issue not a federal one.

[thecoalman]

Originally Posted by Kode

Inconsistencies and confusion are raising their ugly heads here. You say eliminate fees except for administration costs. The two are opposites.

There is no inconsistency, everything I'm suggesting is for the user to pay what it costs the government to provide them those services. When I register my vehicle it doesn't cost the government $60 in administrative costs.

That's not a bad idea but it wouldn't generate enough revenue ...

It can generate as much or as little as you want, the key is the user is paying based on the costs associated with their usage. You set baseline of $X per mile for 2000 pound vehicle. X can be anything, you set X higher than needed so we can catch up on needed repairs. As the weight of the vehicle increases the damage you do to the road increases exponentially, X also increases exponentially.

o fund all the work that needs to be done. So this should be put in place at some point to maintain what

Pricing is determined by what the market will bear.

Total pricing is dictated by costs plus your profit. Only your profit is determined by the market.

[thecoalman]

Is the post office screwed up or is postage cheaper and as reliable as FedEx and UPS?

When you are in the delivery business the way you profit is by having an area saturated with customers. It's much cheaper to go to every house on a street than just a few. With 100% saturation of the market for the USPS and no need to generate a profit private carriers like FedEx and UPS should by all rights be non existent.

While on the topic by law Fedex and UPS cannot offer cheap first class when it gets their mail service. They can only offer expedited services for letters.

[Dumbdowndemocrats]

Hey cremebrulee I remember hearing that Hitler's autobahn has had virtually no maintenance on the concrete surface since it was made is this because they laid twice the amount of concrete down?

[Kode]

Originally Posted by rbohm

wow, you found a few things that government does well.

LOL!!! Yep. Want more?

note however that fire departments are LOCAL not federal.

So there is "good government" and "bad government"? I can dig up lots more examples of federal programs that are well run if you like.

so lets let the feds do what the feds do well, and keep them out of everything else. the minimum wage for instance, a one size fits all minimum wage doesnt work. minimum wages should be a state issue, not a federal one. health insurance should also be a state issue not a federal one.[/quote]
Wowz! It apparently hasn't dawned on you that we cannot have a situation in which some state pays a minimum wage of $4 while others pay no less than $8, right? What do you think that would bring about for problems? Hmmm?

And since you feel that healthcare should be a state issue, then I expect you accept a situation in which a single-payer option is available but insurance companies based in states can continue to sell policies, right?

[Kode]

Originally Posted by thecoalman

Total pricing is dictated by costs plus your profit. Only your profit is determined by the market.

Not in today's world. That's just a capitalist textbook ideal. It may be true for some truly small businesses but for the large employers of big business it isn't.