this post was submitted on 07 Aug 2023
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Fuck Cars
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Regulate the market? What are you, some kind of communist?
Meanwhile, builds the largest highway network in the world, many even in cities; maintain shitload of free parking; also enforces minimum parking requirements, all at the expense of tax payer.
People without cars are literally forced to pay to make everyone's life worse.
FREEDOM!
Don't forget the Freedom™ zoning laws that make sure it's illegal for any American to build any filthy communist multi-family homes on their own private property! It's communist to grant private citizens freedom and property rights!
And even when they can build stuff on their PRIVATELY OWNED TERRAIN, they damn better follow the rules and make their house look EXACTLY EQUAL to every other house on the street. Now that's real red-blooded 'murican capitalism'n freedom, baby!
You know it's freedom when you're not allowed to express yourself or be unique in any way whatsoever! Creativity is communism! I ain't no special snowflake who needs to be unique and special like those dang woke libs commies!
When I found out about this after Climate Town's video on the subject, I was so furious!!!!
Doesn’t most of that come from taxes on fuel?
In some state, yes, if by "most" you mean "more than 50% of road expense is paid by toll and car related taxes".
But that is still a huge percentage not covered by tax for car users, requiring other foundings to cover them. The highest percentage paid by user tax and toll is not even 70% in all the U.S. states.
Not to mention many state dont even cover 50%; some only cover as low as 19% or even 12%.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-07-20/mapping-how-u-s-states-pay-for-roads
Well, we all benefit from the road system even if we ourselves don’t drive, so I guess it’s fair.
It depends, in a country where the road system makes sense, sure. In rural area where every road serves a purpose: connecting business to transport goods, sure.
But excessive roads in cities and suburbs? No. Many roads in city and suburbs of the U.S. should be closed for cars, and be bike, bus, and emergency vehicles only. Since cars either don't use them that much or just don't have good experience on them because of the congestions. This also saves road maintainance, enables a smoother experience in transport and emergency vehicles, controls emission, and encourage a health life style in general.
It is again about the right tools for the job. A loaded van to transport fruit to the local farmer's market, emergency vehicles, these are times where cars are the right tools. On the other hand, F150 is not the right tool to get a Mcdonald's drive through for one.
Ironically, trucks have gotten larger precisely because of regulation. In particular, emissions standards are tied to vehicle size. So if you make your vehicles bigger and bigger, you don't have to make them more efficient.
Also, regulation makes it difficult to import small Japanese kei trucks, and regulation is the biggest reason that the Ford F series truck is the single most popular model of vehicle in the US. In particular, we've taxed foreign-built trucks at 25% since the mid 60s, so there's dramatically fewer models of truck than SUV or cars.
> In particular, emissions standards are tied to vehicle size
this definitely goes on the short list of "most idiotic laws ever", courtesy of your local car industry lobbyist
Yet more evidence of how effective big government is when regulatory capture is a thing.
the difference between regulation and jokes passed off as regulations
And the Hilux isn't available in the US. I use one as my daily driver. Seats four, has a useable bed, hauls anything I throw at it, gets car MPGs, and is narrower than a Camry. It is as much pickup truck as pretty much anyone really needs.
The Hilux and the older Tacoma are basically the same truck with different trim packages.
This shit is the direct consequence of regulation, not lack of it!
I'm talking about both CAFE standards that encourage manufacturers to build big vehicles to fit in the "light truck" loophole, and (infinitely more importantly!) the zoning regulations that led to all the car dependency in the fucking first place!
The problem is that the regulations drop off in this one particular niche that requires/encourages larger vehicles, not that the regulations exist in the first place.
What part of...
> and (infinitely more importantly!) the zoning regulations that led to all the car dependency in the fucking first place!
...did you and the idiots who upvoted you not understand?