On Wed, Jan 29, 2003 at 11:14:56PM -0800, James A. Donald wrote: (snip) > Tyler said: > and the buying up (and > > subsequent dismantling) of lite rail systems in the LA basin > > in the 30s and 40s apparently had a major impact on the > > rollout of vehicles Might we have seen much better public > > transportation in that area if this capitalist coup-d'etat > > hadn't occurred? > > Public transport received, and continues to receive enormous > subsidies.
Actually that's not true, or at least, the subsidy to public transport pales compared to the subsidy to private transport. Witness the recent billions paid to the airlines, about 20-30 times (in one year, mind you) than rail got in the last 20-30 years. Public highways for truckers is even more obscene. It's quite clear that trucks benefit the most, and do far the most damage to roads, so let them pay the entire cost of highway repair and construction. I'd suggest toll-roads, but that has the serious side effect of aiding surveillance and inhibiting free travel of individuals. -- Harmon Seaver CyberShamanix http://www.cybershamanix.com
