Comment 64856

By Observer: who goeth (anonymous) | Posted June 13, 2011 at 15:27:01

Who goeth, who payeth? Roads are paid for out of collective tax money (even the 407 was). Transit structure is also built from and by the collected public purse. Yes, each 'road-user' pays for her/his own vehicle, true--and for fuel, but everyone pays for transit vehicles. Still, all benefit from good transit--just ask the hundreds of employers in central Toronto whose good, reliable employees can get to work, and home again: no workers, no businesses. Good transit brings the customers too. The question for decades has been, why roads "free use," but not transit? Which driver forked over directly out of pocket for a road pot-hole fix lately--even in Hamilton? Supporters of private capital enterprise in big cities should be clamoring for transit that is as excellent and as relatively inexpensive to ride as possible--excellent transit is at least as much a public good as are 'good roads.' Solid arguments for even free transit have been made, for all the above reasons and more. [And don't start with the "frivolous use" that such 'cheap' or free transit would 'encourage. So What? Who never went out just for 'a drive'?]Yet any tolling of roads is deemed to be heretical speech--we paid already!! Transit users pay tolls on each use. The 'free road' could even be seen as a public benefit provided to drivers as reward for their purchasing vehicles--I've got my car, I'm free of the tyranny of transit fares because our roads are 'free!' Yay! The discussion will continue, but much of it will be the male equivalent of hysterical. More on another occasion, perhaps.

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