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kevalry t1_j6na8zd wrote

In an ideal world, we would cut transit fares and raise gas taxes, tolls, and fees like other countries where progressives claim to want to emulate. However even suggesting raising gas prices here even by a couple of cents is like a third rail of politics. Even raising transit fares so the users have to pay for it would make sense for the average American voter but it will literally discourage transit usage as transit fares have increased faster with inflation than gas taxes have.

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CJYP t1_j6pacqc wrote

It's generally not the progressives who run crying to the Republicans when people talk about raising the gas tax.

Gas tax needs to be revisited soon anyway. Once most cars are electric, the gas tax stops being meaningful at all. We need a vehicle miles traveled tax instead.

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deadliftothersup t1_j6pi0db wrote

Miles and weight the way some tolls proxy by using axle/tire count. This would reflect road damage better.

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TightBoysenberry_ t1_j6nbc9f wrote

conservatives and progressives in America don't want to pay for anything.

They think everything the govt does should be magically free.

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3720-To-One t1_j6ngwiy wrote

Lol. Yeah, except progressives do want to pay for things via taxation.

It’s conservatives who think stable and desirable societies don’t cost anything.

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TightBoysenberry_ t1_j6nidqx wrote

talk to any progressive in MA about raising their taxes or fees or whatever, and watch them immediately backpedal.

they are for lots of things, but if you suggest they pay more to see those things happen, they are suddenly not for them anymore.

same reason most of them are NIMBY and against housing, in their town or neighborhood. but 100% for it somewhere else.

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corned_beef_balls t1_j6o3gl2 wrote

MA had a tax refund last year. Some of this doesn’t require more taxes.

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therealcmj t1_j6oygz5 wrote

Hi. It’s me a progressive here.

Raise my taxes. Please.

Use it to provide universal pre-k. Feed kids free lunch at school. Provide free after school programs. Free subway service for all city residents. Lower T fares for commuter rail. Raise on street parking prices. Tax the fuck out of parking lots in the city. Add a congestion tax.

K thx

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DarkPurpleHibiscus t1_j6nxut1 wrote

Sounds like you've been listening to conservatives lying to other conservatives about what progressives are like.

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TightBoysenberry_ t1_j6o1ay9 wrote

Most people are hypocrites. Has nothing to do with what they believe.

Most of the Boston/Camberville people you talk to are all about housing and progressivism and transit and bikes!! Until they put a bike lane or new housing development on their street. Then they are vociferously against it.

Anyone I know in Davis Sq or Union Sq for example, is 100% against the new development there. Because change = bad. They live there, and nobody else should!

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10lbCheeseBurger t1_j6okupb wrote

The MBTA should be a loss-leader. It is one of the main reasons the reason the city of Boston and its surrounding boroughs attract so many businesses, young people, etc.

This shit is a Costco chicken. It shouldn't matter if it doesn't turn a profit on its own--the money it brings into the state indirecty cannot be overstated.

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TightBoysenberry_ t1_j6ooqxp wrote

You can't argue that to the average citizen though, they don't understand the concept. They can't understand it... because they are stupid and ignorant when it comes to economics beyond basic arithmetic.

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RoyalWater54 t1_j6nam8u wrote

As it should be. People don’t have that many options. The MBTA is one of the most poorly run public transit systems in the country.

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kevalry t1_j6nbd4b wrote

Not really. MBTA has gotten worse than SEPTA but it is better than most transit systems in the USA where it is virtually non-existent.

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UltravioletClearance t1_j6nd48x wrote

Two thirds of the state lack any form of inter city public transit. It's a regressive tax on people who can't afford the luxury of living in a commuter rail town. Many of whom have already been forced past 495 or into New Hampshire by gentrification and a complete failure to build housing.

Even the commuter rail system within the 1A/1 fare zones is a mess. A lot of people who live near those stations work outside of the standard 9-5 work hours so the Fairmount and Needham lines don't serve a significant percentage of Boston residents.

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AboyNamedBort t1_j6o08pl wrote

So you're answer is that non drivers should give millions every year to drivers because drivers are too cheap to pay for the roads they use? The more someone drives the more welfare they get. No wonder we have so much traffic and pollution. Our ridiculously low gas tax and free parking encourages people to clog up the roads and pollute the air.

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UltravioletClearance t1_j6o1j1m wrote

My answer is we should only consider penalizing driving once there is sufficient housing for everyone who works in Boston to live either in Boston or within walking distance of a commuter rail station.

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dpm25 t1_j6o7n6w wrote

Is it penalizing driving to subsidize driving less?

That's a pretty hard sell.

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