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Voters reject public transit taxes because they can’t imagine themselves riding. There is a huge blind spot on the cost of roads. Never raising gasoline tax and

Voters reject public transit taxes because they can’t imagine themselves riding. There is a huge blind spot on the cost of roads. Never raising gasoline tax and continuing to mandate minimum parking just shifts the cost of driving from motorists to general taxpayers.

runarberg 5y ago
Even this, for me, seems like a lousy excuse a politician would make. Even if true, a good politician should be able to convince the general public that this is a good idea. So far politicians that advocate for public transit as a remedy for our inevitable step away from fossil fuels are hard to find. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez bears mentioning here a one of few who does. Among my local politicians, state senetor Joe Nguyen goes a step further and advocates for public transit as social justice issue (as well as a climate one). The badies are easier to find. California Governor Gavin Newsom stresses the importance of tackling the climate crises, yet is not funding necessary infrastructure project which would make the transformation easier. Europe is also full of the Gavin Newsom types. And this is sad because most people are in favor of radical climate policies. So convincing the public of a good climate policy should be easy (this is also [probably] true of the west coast states). In my opinion, if dealing with the climate disaster is as important as these politicians correctly claim it to be, then they should commit to it. Failing to do so reflects how bad they are at politics and honestly they should probably find a new career where they will do less damage.
- mercutio2 5y ago
  What makes you think Newsom has the power to fund anything? Governors don’t control taxation. They control the executive branch, not the legistlature.
  - runarberg 5y ago
    He has the power to influence the legislator, and he hasn’t been shy about using that power to speak against funding green infrastructure since he took office.

runarberg 5y ago

Even this, for me, seems like a lousy excuse a politician would make. Even if true, a good politician should be able to convince the general public that this is a good idea. So far politicians that advocate for public transit as a remedy for our inevitable step away from fossil fuels are hard to find. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez bears mentioning here a one of few who does. Among my local politicians, state senetor Joe Nguyen goes a step further and advocates for public transit as social justice issue (as well as a climate one). The badies are easier to find. California Governor Gavin Newsom stresses the importance of tackling the climate crises, yet is not funding necessary infrastructure project which would make the transformation easier. Europe is also full of the Gavin Newsom types. And this is sad because most people are in favor of radical climate policies. So convincing the public of a good climate policy should be easy (this is also [probably] true of the west coast states). In my opinion, if dealing with the climate disaster is as important as these politicians correctly claim it to be, then they should commit to it. Failing to do so reflects how bad they are at politics and honestly they should probably find a new career where they will do less damage.

mercutio2 5y ago
What makes you think Newsom has the power to fund anything? Governors don’t control taxation. They control the executive branch, not the legistlature.
- runarberg 5y ago
  He has the power to influence the legislator, and he hasn’t been shy about using that power to speak against funding green infrastructure since he took office.