Mayors want mobility tax on drivers to fund $7.5B transit expansion
 

Mayors want mobility tax on drivers to fund $7.5B transit expansion | CTV Vancouver News

So I'm going to give my two cents on this "PLAN"

I believe the government should not be in the transportation planning business.
Their plan is to reduce cars from high volume traffic areas and penalizing them for working the 9 to 5 grind.

That's obvious not fair, we do have a carbon tax and it apparently is not enough to fund their new expansion. So where is all the money going? I educated guess would be they are funneling it to other account for political extra curriculars.

So the guess the carbon tax is a bust, plan b would be this new plan to tax drivers driving habits in the name of reducing pollution and congested streets in Metro-Vancouver. I don't buy it!

Does anyone see the flaws in all these plans?

If you guessed Government... your right.

Time and time again the government has been unable to appropriately predict future population growth. Taxes revenues and fail to balance budgets. It seems they have a reactive stances towards everything they "PLAN", instead of a proactive approach.

Can you believe these people are our leaders! GTFO!

My plan would be to farm out the GVRD Public transportation designs to a private company and they will invest in the Capital for infrastructure needed to meet and needs of the GVRD. They most talented people work for private companies while the least intelligent work for the government.

Anyone else would like to contribute to this discussion?

Yeah, the carbon tax just goes into general revenue...

As for the mayors, they can go to hell :swear:

The crooks that run TransLink are probably thinking of pay increases. Maybe the Province should consider bringing in a competent group to manage and run the system.

Soon our cars will have mandatory compass tap in and out systems installed to charge us for how far we drive

You realize what happens if you privatize alternative forms of transportation, right? The low volume routes get downsized, if not outright slashed, and prices can skyrocket due to a lack of competition. Sure, it might be all fine and dandy if you only have to use buses around the Downtown Core, but the further reaches of the GVRD would be greatly affected. It's like BC Ferries - certain routes operate at a constant loss merely because service needs to be given to those areas. If a fully private company were to run it, you can bet those would be the first ones to go in order to balance the budget.

Public transportation is one of those areas where I have absolutely no qualms with the government running.

By the way, the Carbon Tax is revenue neutral... meaning the government doesn't actually make any money from it.

The government has to be involved in the transportation planning business. Even if there was absolutely no public transit, it would still need to design and maintain the road network.

That's a pretty baseless statement. Maybe it goes toward paying for your health care because you don't pay enough taxes (such as income taxes, and sales taxes) to sustain the health care system.

So, what's your plan then? Keep in mind that the province has no say in telling people to stay away given things like the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the fact that immigration is controlled by the federal government.

You're trolling pretty hard. Private companies don't give a shit about the transportation needs of the region - they care about making a profit. Therefore, only regions dense enough to generate a profit would get service while other areas, like any suburb outside of Burnaby would get nothing.

I'm glad that people like you don't work for the government.

this has got to be the most dumbest thing i've heard in awhile. soo much ignorance I dont even know where to begin. It drives me nuts that there are people like you who just go on ranting about this and that but have no damn clue on how it actually works. your plan should be to jump off a cliff because you're an idiot. I honestly think you need to step into the real world and see how it actually works.



private companies will only make it worst as all they care about is profit. even the most basic econ 101 class has taught us that public goods or services like infrastructure should be best handled by government organizations.

that's why a lot of times government hire consultants - the so called "experts or smart" people, instead of actually privatizing transportation.




problem with transportation is there are many interest groups. people in Vancouver don't want to pay for something that people in surrey will use etc etc. and everybody thinks they have a PhD in planning or can be an armchair quarterback when it comes to voicing their "plan"

I think it should be a requirement that you must read all previous Translink/Public Transportation threads before you're allowed to post a new thread so that:
1). we don't keep repeating the same arguments
2). people might learn a thing or two
3). we don't have ignorant posts like this

http://wpmedia.o.canada.com/2013/07/...2&h=330&crop=1

hmm mobility tax might be pushing it, what if I want to do a road trip to Kelowna?

I don't mind if they toll every bridge in the lower mainland and entry into downtown like many US cities. I'm still dreaming of the day they turn oak/granville/hasting street into a highway.

Yah... force everyone out to the suburbs with ridiculous housing prices... and then charge them money for the privilege of commuting to their jobs in horrible traffic every day. Sounds legit.

The gov have to keep in mind that a lot of people are force to live far far away form their work place due to housing cost. So now they are punishing people who don't make enough to live close to work by taxing them? The reason they move is coz they can't afford so I don't see the logic behind it............

Increasing public transit is a must but I think each city should pay for the appropriate %. Example if the whole plan cost 100Billion and we are spending 40billion on City of Vancouver then City of Vancouver is on the foot for 40billion because the increase service is in City of Vancouver. That way cities who gain little to no increase in public transit don't have to pay as much.

I think the better way would be a public/private partnership similar to Canada Line. From what i've heard CL is doing fairly well with higher than projected ridership.

Maybe we need to look at that for bus services as well.

Commuting sucks, but what can municipal governments do? The only tool they have is property taxes. The popular idea is to raise property taxes for foreigners, but municipal governments probably don't want to bite the hand that feeds them (i.e. developers and construction companies). Besides, most municipal governments don't have the capacity to verify the residency of property owners.

Revenue neutral.... Just like aircare? :lol

We get taxed on taxed. You cant win.

yea don't charge fee for people who don't even use bridges..

just use ETC, problem solved

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_toll_collection

Anyways, Canada makes one of the best trains in the world.
I don't know why they had to purchase Skytrain fleets from Hyundai. Maybe they gave cheaper pricing?

Just stick to Bombardier
Bombardier Transportation - Rail Vehicles and Transportation Systems

I'm a full supporter of better public transit. Less cars on the road, less ICBC claims, less traffic tickets, etc.

Driving is a luxury :)


Transit is for the unwashed masses :(

If you work 9-5, you'll get stuck in a traffic jam. There's nothing luxurious about that. I'd rather take a train and get home fast.

Rich people will tell you flying a private jet is a luxury, taking a flight on B787 with hundreds of people squished in is for the unwashed masses.

No one truly knows who owns or controls what in Canada... short of protesting its better to look for solutions that are actually conceivable... and no, voting wont work as there wont be a political party to fit peoples needs.

Possible solutions;
Car pooling groups (even with multiple switch over cars to bypass zone fees)
Aesthetically converting ones car to look new yet pay lower insurance
RS group buy of mini buses

:failed:

Japan Rail is trying to sell this fleet, maybe BC Transit should buy it. It is almost 20 years old but still better than anything we have in BC.

1995 Kawasaki/Hitachi JR500 Nozomi

http://frontroll.com/foto_berita/80linda30.jpg
http://www63.tok2.com/home2/tuccy/im.../jr500-019.jpg
http://static.panoramio.com/photos/large/95709980.jpg

so you can get from surrey to DT in 10 minutes vs the 45 minutes it currently takes on the skytrain?

we could just spend all that money on GTRs for RS instead

If they don't want to buy Kawasaki, they can just keep it Canadian and go for Bombardier.

Here's a brand spanking new Bombardier Zefiro.

http://www.railwaypro.com/wp/wp-cont.../10/zefiro.jpg
http://img.welt.de/img/wirtschaft/cr...-bombadier.jpg