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BTW, Uber and Lyft are both already on board with Mayor Durkan's idea. If people have to pay by the mile anyway, why not let someone else do the driving?
Remember, some experts are saying we only have 12 years left to do something about climate change. This would be a HUGE step towards that.
Why wouldn't Uber and Lyft like it??
THEY don't pay the tolls ..... the customer pays the Tolls.
That would be the same customer who has already PAID TAXES for those same roads.
IF Nancy wants this for the "progressive" blue states ... that's fine.
To impose this extra TAX on everyone else is not fine. I've heard this "Armageddon" in X-number of years since the 1970's and they have been wrong with every prediction.
I'm sure electric cars will have the ability to recharge themselves quicker using solar panels.
That's only limited by the capacity of your power sources whether its fossil fuels or solar however with solar you are also dependent on the daylight and unpredictable weather conditions. As far as an panels on a car itself the surface area is so small I'm not even sure that would be possible with some super efficient magical unicorn panel
the federal govt should have absolutely nothing to do with this. if cities and states want to do it fine.
Again, one of the keys to something like this is what I call 'universalization.' This is one of the keys to the success of the Nordic economic model, which is so admired and esteemed throughout the world.
A key feature of Scandinavian safety net programs is that they apply to everyone. The Scandinavians shy away from the means testing so common in US programs.
That's why I say that the tolling should apply to every highway, road, street, and bridge. Again, when a program like this is not universal, those who opt out end up like beetles in an ant colony, causing nothing but problems.
Again, one of the keys to something like this is what I call 'universalization.' This is one of the keys to the success of the Nordic economic model, which is so admired and esteemed throughout the world.
They sell oil from the North Sea. That is their economic model. No different than Dubai. Lot's of oil revenue, small population.
But instead of calling it 'universal tolling,' we should call it 'congestion pricing,' which is progressive-sounding, and reduces any negative vibe.
As more people drive electric cars, gas tax revenue declines. Congestion pricing solves this problem. We have the technology to do it.
I'd propose a swift and sure transition--say universal tolling by Jan 2021, so that the naysayers don't have time to put on a big whine-fest. It could be made part of Nancy Pelosi's proposed infrastructure package.
In Washington State, we have been running a pilot project of 'pay per mile' rather than 'pay per gallon.' It has been a big success. Seattle's first openly lesbian mayor, Jenny Durkan, has already started to explore implementing congestion pricing in the city. The aim is to use it as a way to address climate change.
The key would be to make it UNIVERSAL. Every highway, road, street, tunnel, bridge, and even alley-way would be tolled. The Scandinavians has long had 'universalism' as a key element of the Nordic economic model. To recycle an analogy from another thread, if a program is not universal, those who don't buy in end up being like a beetle in an ant colony, causing nothing but problems. What do you think?
how about instead of government spending tons of money on programs that dont work, we instead spend that money on infrastructure. we pay enough taxes as it is.
tell me, why do you want to control everything that everyone does in life? why do you want a nanny state government? do you think that somehow if everyone was made equally poor that everyone would be happier somehow?
I have no issue with pay for use, tolling those who use the roads, bridges and tunnels.
we already do that with this thing called a fuel tax, though there are private roads that do charge a toll because they are not supported by the government.
They sell oil from the North Sea. That is their economic model. No different than Dubai. Lot's of oil revenue, small population.
That is Norway only. Sweden, Finland, Iceland, and Denmark have little if any oil. But they all have the universal safety net systems (Iceland to a lesser extent).
Their model is hugely admired around the world. President Obama used to often say (paraphrase) 'why can't we all be like the Scandinavians?'
Out of the 20 largest companies in Scandinavia - ONE is oil and gas.
Please list out the inventions from Dubai comparable.....
My friends wife welds at the shipyard in Denmark that builds these:
"Maersk E Class
The Maersk E Series comprises eight 14,770 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) container ships. Each sister ship bear names beginning with the letter "E". Until 2012, they were the largest container ship ever constructed, and are among the longest ships currently in use at 397 metres (1,302 ft) long and 56 metres (184 ft) wide. They are owned by the Danish A. P. Moller-Maersk Group. The first in the class built was Emma Maersk by Odense Steel Shipyard Ltd., Denmark. The E-class was followed by the Triple-E class, which is even larger and more fuel-efficient."
Please, Waldo, show us the Arabs welding together container ships that each hold 15,000 containers???
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