Comment 28932

By kevlahan (registered) | Posted February 21, 2009 at 16:23:36

Mr Meister, I'm not claiming the average ride length is 600m.

It is the average ride length divided by the average number of people on the bus (times two to account). This is the 'road wear' per transit user, and is how a 'user pay principle' would charge road users.

Remember, we are trying to calculate how much the transit user should pay for their contribution to road wear compared to the average motorist.

The money Hamilton pays on roads come from property taxes, which are paid by everyone, whether they drive or not.

Of course, there are all sorts of other costs associated roads, which are paid for out of general tax revenue (above and beyond the gas tax): policing, emergency services, pollution, insurance costs and lost work due to deaths and injuries. More recently, we've seen massive subsidies to the petroleum industry and massive grants and loans to the auto industry.

To get a better idea of the full costs, and who pays, please see the federal government report "Estimates of the Full Cost of Transportation in Canada" http://www.tc.gc.ca/pol/en/aca/fci/Final...

From the executive summary:

"The major source of transportation’s financial costs is related to the vehicle assets and the operation costs of the vehicles – between $ 145 billion and $ 153 billion."

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