Taxes and cycling
I'm new here, but I did a search on "tax" and didn't find any articles. I came up with an idea, perhaps not so new, but I'd like to discuss...
I was in a bicycle shop the other day, and I heard that in B.C. Canada that purchases of bicycles were exempt from consumption (sales) tax. I thought this might be a good idea.
In the U.S., the government offers a tax credit ($2000) for those who buy (supposedly low-emission) hybrid vehicles. This is to hopefully offset the cost of these more expensive cars and encourage manufacturers to keep building more efficient cars.
Do you think that there should be some sort of encouragement on the part of government for increased bicycle purchases? The underlying goal would be to get people out of their cars. I'm not sure how such a tax credit, deduction, or sales tax exemption could work. It could be paid to:
1. Those that use the cycle primarily for transportation to and from their job.
2. Ride at least 5 miles a week, on average.
3. The employer has identified this person as riding 5 miles, on average.
Any credit would be based on the purchase price of the cycle, over the expected life of the cycle, e.g. 3-5 years.
The city of Redmond, WA provides (through my wife's employer) gift certificates to those who take the bus at least a few times a week. This is done to help alleviate traffic issues in the town.