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> Each American driver pays about $450 per year toward roads, according to the Journal of Infrastructure Systems. Europeans fork over on average 2 to 3.5 times
by em500 9y ago
> Each American driver pays about $450 per year toward roads, according to the Journal of Infrastructure Systems. Europeans fork over on average 2 to 3.5 times as much — the difference is largely in fuel taxes.
You get what you pay for I guess. Keep in mind that per capita income in America, both nominal and at PPP, is much higher than Europe (even excluding Eastern Europe). Even a relative poor state like Michigan (the setting of this article) has a GDP/capita comfortably exceeding Germany, France or UK.
- jahnu 9y agoKeep in mind median German household income is $50,500 Median Michigan household income is $51,084 You always have to account for the very different income distribution. But point taken. I was utterly shocked at the state of the roads in NYC. Even in Manhattan they could be really poor.
- maxerickson 9y agoThe median income supports their point well. Looking at those figures you'd expect Michigan to have no more trouble than Germany maintaining roads.
- lostmsu 9y agoYou forget about population density. Lower density requires longer roads.
- em500 9y agoYet the German pays $5.69/gallon compared to the American $2.56 (https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/gas-prices/ https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/gas-prices/).
- Feniks 9y agoTo people who haven't been to Germany: the roads there are not great. Germany did the same thing as the US has: cut funding. You never EVER cut funding on infrastructure. Not even in a recession. It will come back to haunt you.
- quotemstr 9y agoNew York City learned this lesson only after infrastructure got so bad in the 1970s that a concrete truck literally fall through an elevated highway. http://www.nytimes.com/1973/12/16/archives/truck-and-car-fall-as-west-side-highway-collapses.html http://www.nytimes.com/1973/12/16/archives/truck-and-car-fal...
- nikanj 9y agoIt comes back to haunt the next generation. Meanwhile, this generation gets to enjoy both smooth roads and low taxes.
- shalmanese 9y agoYou would think a generation of SimCity players would have learnt that lesson.