Originally Posted by randya
We as a society in general (and cyclists in particular) heavily subsidize roads and other infrastructure for the convenience of motor vehicles and their operators. The more you drive, the more damage you do to the roads with your vehicle, the more heavily you are personally subsidized by the rest of the taxpayers and contributors.
As taxpayers, we also heavily subsidize the the air transport system whether we use it or not.
Yet public transit and rail in specific (not just intracity rail, but intercity rail as well) are for some reason asked to pay their own way. Personally, I am much happier seeing my tax dollars funding rail projects, than funding road projects. Modern rail systems are a much lower impact, more sustainable transport mode than a system which relies on private automobiles and associated infrastructure needs.
Randy, I think you miss my point: I don't think the highways should be subsidized from the general taxes, either. I don't think the airports should be subsidized from the general taxes. If taxes were lowered, since we're no longer subsidizing all these things that people don't necessarily use, then people get to see the real cost of what they're doing, rather than the subsidized cost which encourages them to use more without regard for the hidden costs.