> We don't subsidize highways; the total taxes collected more than cover the costs. Sorry, but this is a commonly held misconception. From this article: http:/

> We don't subsidize highways; the total taxes collected more than cover the costs. Sorry, but this is a commonly held misconception. From this article: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,274113,00.html http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,274113,00.html "Close to two-thirds of the trust fund's $40 billion in receipts last year came from the gasoline tax." So the trust fund, which is made up of gas and diesel taxes, amounts to about $40 billion a year. As I have pointed out before here: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=260824 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=260824 Total federal outlays were about $67 billion that same year, and states and local governments usually throw in billions more. And besides, I never claimed you can't fund rail via use taxes. But subsidizing roads to the tune of billions a year and expecting rail infrastructure to compete without such subsidies is just silly.