Private Roads

[lordmetroid]

Why not just share this burden thru the state. It's not like everyone doesn't want well kept roads? Market isn't best at everything. Something is just best to be kept under the states duties.

[David]

I agree that the market isn't perfect.  But the state is financed by theft and backed up by force and the threat of force.  There is no 'opt out' when the state does things.  I am tired of hearing about some person being forced out of their home of 35 years, or out of business for 20 years, just so we can have another road that would not be in existence if people had to actually pay for it themselves directly.  If someone wants to live out in the country? Great.  Pay for or find some alternative way to go to town. 
It's not a matter of efficiency, it's a matter of right and wrong. 

[MaineShark]

Why not just share this burden thru the state. It's not like everyone doesn't want well kept roads? Market isn't best at everything. Something is just best to be kept under the states duties.

So what about someone who lives way up north and never drives on Rt101 (across the southern end of the state)?  He should pay for a road he doesn't drive on?

And why would we want the state to do it?  The state is, invariably, the least efficient way to get things done.  Look at a state road crew sometime.  There will be three guys standing around, and one guy working.

Joe

[lordmetroid]

He might want to drive at some obscure roads at some times... And for the workers, I never seen such lazy workers in all my life and exprience from countries such as Sweden, Japan, Germany and France. USA has the worst efficiency of them all. It's something about your design on the system that creates your flawed road working market.

[MaineShark]

He might want to drive at some obscure roads at some times...

Then he can pay the owner of that road, at that time.

And for the workers, I never seen such lazy workers in all my life and exprience from countries such as Sweden, Japan, Germany and France. USA has the worst efficiency of them all. It's something about your design on the system that creates your flawed road working market.

No, it's a part of all socialism.  If someone is guaranteed an income, regardless of his actions, he has no reason to strive to do better.

Pardon me, but I know a lot of people from Europe (including some from the countries you've mentioned), and they tell the exact opposite story...

Joe

[aries]

In Kyogle, the town in the Australian outback that I lived in when I was very young, there's a 7-mile long private road owned and maintained by the Lions Club chairity.

Do you know the name of it? I can see the town on google maps

[aries]

I don't like tolls, although the idea of having advertisements at red lights sounds good to me.  You could have an ad that somehow lets you know that the light is changing so that people don't zone out as much looking at ads.  I would like to see the toll booths on the Spaulding Turnpike replaced with advertising billboards.  Most of the traffic issues we have on the pike are because of the backups at the tollbooths.  During the winter, I have seen a good number of cars off the road because the drivers had to brake for the toll booths and they weren't paying adequate attention to the road ahead of them.  Removing toll booths would most likely result in less wasted fuel and fewer accidents.

NH could use a lot more billboards... where they arent blocking our great scenery

I think theyre banned from interstate highways, and anyway the layout of the highways dont really accommadate billboards, as 93 and 89 are both very rural, and 93 is probably the most often travelled highway in the state, 95 being second.

What if the state could put up overhead signs, like you see that normall have road names or something on them, but they would have ad space, say, 2 ads between 2 signs over 2 lanes going both north and south, and advertizers could purchase them.
So say, "Next exit for a great place to stay with Al's Motel!" or maybe "Barnyard Steakhouse, exit 6, take a left."

Even just "Sign up for a visa card."
Whatever billboards normally say. It's probably considerably "safer" to have the signs directly visible than how they often are, giant signs placed on private fields off the highway directing you to the next exit.

They could also have signs at the exits, like "This highway brought to you by Burger King" or whatever they wanted, with directions to BK from that exit. At $1000 per sign per week, that's $4000 for a 2 lane highway, for each place that these would be put up. And if people start saying they divert your eyes to the road, stick a brevity regulation in the law, say it has to be reasonably read in a few seconds.

[error]

You mean like they do on the Mass Pike, this Fast Lane sponsored by Citizens Bank?

[Braddogg]

You mean like they do on the Mass Pike, this Fast Lane sponsored by Citizens Bank?

Seems like a great way to do things in a private system.

[error]

You mean like they do on the Mass Pike, this Fast Lane sponsored by Citizens Bank?

Seems like a great way to do things in a private system.

Yes, but clearly the government misses the point. I read a front-page story in Wednesday's Boston Globe that basically said "You're going to pay tolls FOREVER! Bow down and lick our feet, little servants."

[Ron Helwig]

The tax on gasoline could be treated as a toll. You pay the toll when you fill up. The gas tax should be dedicated entirely to roads. The toll/tax collected at the pumps can be distributed to the road owners. This would avoid the dreaded toll booth, yet allow for private ownership of the roads themselves.

http://www.amazon.com/Roads-Market-Economy-Gabriel-Roth/dp/1840145234

[Pat McCotter]

How about interstates/divided highways owned by transport companies. They charge owners of feeder roads to connect. These smaller road owners charge developers to connect development roads to them and/or homeowners to connect a driveway.

Price could be based on estimated/actual road usage.

[MaineShark]

The tax on gasoline could be treated as a toll. You pay the toll when you fill up. The gas tax should be dedicated entirely to roads. The toll/tax collected at the pumps can be distributed to the road owners. This would avoid the dreaded toll booth, yet allow for private ownership of the roads themselves.

So someone driving along in an old "gas guzzler" car pays more than someone driving a big, but modern pickup truck that does more damage to the roads?

If you wanted to tax something in order to pay for the roads, taxing tires would be more equitable.  Tires are designed for particular purposes and wear out in a relatively predictable manner, and that has a lot more to do with the damage to the roads than the amount of gas someone uses.

The soft drag radials on my Buick don't do much damage to the roads, but if I put studded snow tires on there (not that I would), I'd be creating a lot more wear-and-tear.

Joe

[error]

In Oregon, they're having a trial of taxing vehicles by miles traveled.

Unfortunately, they're doing this by attaching a GPS unit to every car in the trial and keeping a massive database of everywhere anyone goes.

[Ron Helwig]

The tax on gasoline could be treated as a toll. You pay the toll when you fill up. The gas tax should be dedicated entirely to roads. The toll/tax collected at the pumps can be distributed to the road owners. This would avoid the dreaded toll booth, yet allow for private ownership of the roads themselves.

So someone driving along in an old "gas guzzler" car pays more than someone driving a big, but modern pickup truck that does more damage to the roads?

If you wanted to tax something in order to pay for the roads, taxing tires would be more equitable.  Tires are designed for particular purposes and wear out in a relatively predictable manner, and that has a lot more to do with the damage to the roads than the amount of gas someone uses.

The soft drag radials on my Buick don't do much damage to the roads, but if I put studded snow tires on there (not that I would), I'd be creating a lot more wear-and-tear.

Joe

According to what a road engineer told me, the roads are only really damaged by the biggest vehicles. In other words, if a road is built to handle 18-wheelers, anything smaller does no harm. The tire idea is pretty good though.