ANN5250

While reading the paper this morning, I came across an article suggesting that bikes should be taxed just like cars. I am going to send a response as to why they shouldn't be and am looking for suggestions. Thanks

SpeshulEd 

Because, I already own cars. Should we tax shoes too?

...Obviously those damn pedestrians are destroying the roads, making potholes and such ...and don't get me started on this "walkable city" bull****, "more infrastructure, give us side walks!" they shout. Screw that, buy a car and sit in gridlock with the rest of us or get the hell off my lawn.

Sorry, sarcasm seems to be the only way to handle this situation.

TheLibrarian

The easy answer is because they are green, dont burn fossil fuels, safer, quieter etc. Seems like simple answers but when confronting a town board or policy makers 3rd grade simplistic arguments seem to work. As if they were just waiting for someone to come in and state the obvious. Dont overlook it though non bikers may not think much about the world of bikes and need someone to tell them the basic arguments. How exactly are cars taxed? Sales tax? Thats not more for cars than anything else as far as I'm aware and you pay sales tax on your bike for certain. Tax on gas is not tax on car. So what other taxed like cars are they even talking about?

Jaywalk3r

Much of the cost of road building and maintenance comes from the general tax fund. Bicyclists pay those taxes like anyone else. Typically, their tax contributions to maintenance already outweigh the cost of the wear and tear that results from the use of their bicycles on the road, so they're already subsidizing motor vehicle use.

Bicyclists receive a disproportionately smaller benefit from taxpayer subsidized "free" parking. They similarly subsidize parking for motorists at privately owned stores with parking lots by having to pay the same price for goods that motorists pay, despite not requiring a full parking space.

PepeM

How are cars taxed?

fietsbob

You Off Planet?

sales Exise, and Fuel tax per gallon and service , another sales tax.

then comes the extra taxes thru citations by the police for operating violations.

little taxes needed because of all the Income Taxes on the 1% & multinational corporations that are reduced by their funding their politicians.

PolarBear007

License/registration. Additionally, sometimes there are specific road use taxes levied depending on the type of vehicle that is a part of the registration.

Further, sometimes a state/municipality levies an additional tax/fee for vehicles purchased outside of the state which may or may not trickle down to local/county road maintenance funds.

indyfabz

Thought this thread might require extra. At least three tubs if it had been started in the A&S forum.

Retro Grouch 

To maximize revenue, bicycles should be taxed on a per mile basis. Require each rider to fill out a form indicating the miles ridden to compute the tax. Bike riders love to lie about how much they ride so the tax money would pour in.

jefnvk

If I could trust the money would go to biking infrastructure, I'd be all for it. I try to make it to charity events that support the various trails, biking promotion groups, etc., and wouldn't balk at a license plate that goes to support such activities.

As to why they shouldn't? I'm far more inclined to believe the money will get wasted protecting some tadpole that only lives in one single mud puddle than used for its intended purposes.

Milton Keynes

The basic answer is that bicycles should not be taxed like motor vehicles because they don't cause the wear and tear on city streets like motor vehicles do. Potholes are caused by numerous 1-ton vehicles going down that street, not so much by a 200 lb. man on a 30 lb. bicycle. Not to mention the fact that bicycles are non-polluting and quiet.

Just how much tax revenue do they think the government would rake in by taxing bicycles?

gsa103

In the US, that's simply sales tax, and bicycles are subject to the same sales tax laws as cars.

With declining gas tax revenues, general tax payer funding is increasingly required for road upkeep. To that extent, bikes likely pay their fair share, since bikes contribute no significant wear to roads. The only real bicycling cost is upkeep of dedicated bicycle-only infrastructure, which is basically non-existent in the US. Yes, bike lanes are painted on roads, but the repair schedule is entirely dictated by the overall road condition (with wear from cars/trucks). Other things are typically multi-use paths, in case, we should equally tax shoes.

16 Tons

We are probably not far from bike registration in the US.

Big Grove

There are very few 1 ton vehicles driving on the streets. That is about what a 1990 Mazda Miata weighs.

The average new car weighs over 2 tons (4000 lbs). The average 1/2 ton pickup truck is approaching 3 tons (6000 lbs).

JohnDThompson 

In Wisconsin last year, there was a proposal to put a $25 tax on all bicycle sales. This is the letter I sent Rep. Nygren and my Assemblywoman and State Senator:

Hon. John Nygren:

I read with interest and concern your proposal to enact a $25 tax on new bicycle sales, ostensibly to end a supposed “free ride” bicyclists enjoy on Wisconsin’s roads. My concerns include the following:

1) Many of the roads bicyclists use are paid for by property taxes, not the fuel tax, so any cyclist who pays property tax is already paying for road building. Since bicycles cause far less wear on the roads than motor vehicles and require less pavement, parking, etc. a person who uses their bicycle for transportation is likely actually subsidizing those who use cars exclusively.

2) The proposed tax is highly regressive. A person who can only afford a $100 WalMart bike pays a $25 tax -- 25% of the bicycle’s cost. But a person who can afford to buy a high-end $6,000 Trek bicycle pays the same $25 tax -- only 0.42% of the bicycle’s cost.

3) Since wear and tear on our roads is roughly proportional to vehicle weight, why not apportion the tax in a way that reflects this reality? Propose a uniform tax on all new vehicles -- cars, trucks, motorcycles, and bicycles -- based on vehicle weight. This would place the burden of maintaining our roads on the users who impose the most wear on the roads.

Thank you for your attention to my concerns

Sincerely,

John D Thompson

TimothyH

I'll bite.

Cars are not taxed. People who own and use cars are taxed.

Ammirite?

TimothyH

This would have been my letter.


-Tim-

ANN5250

when you're right, you're right

ANN5250

Thanks so much, I knew I would get some great ideas here.

dksix

Rather than tax cyclist, mount camera's on all bikes that can get plate numbers and send tickets to all passing motor vehicles that violate minimum passing distances. I don't know about the rest of you but I'd bring in some $$$$ for the counties.

StanSeven

Some posters forget that bike lanes often are part of the road structure. I just went past an older four lane road that needed repaving last time I saw it. Now it's been resurfaced but it's two lanes with a center turn lane and bike lanes added. That's really nice but car tax helped pay for that. So it's probably fair that bicycles help pay for maintenance.

Slash5

Moderator's note: This post in its original form violated bikeforms.net policy on the use of copyrighted material.

Cyclists vs. drivers: Who pays their fair share?

"Freeloader!" the driver yells out his window

unterhausen

I do pay taxes on my bike just like I do on my car. I pay gas taxes for all the gas I put in it, and I pay sales tax when I buy it. In addition t the infrastructure subsidies of cars that people often note, we have significantly more emergency services, court cases, and police patrols than we would if everyone rode a bike or a bus. It's these hidden subsidies that really add up.

Jaywalk3r

And you're forgetting that bike infrastructure benefits bicyclists and non-bicyclists alike. It provides more jobs per dollar spent than car-only infrastructure projects. It increases property values. It decreases congestion. It increases business for businesses along the bike lanes. The list goes on.

CliffordK

I might be willing to pay $5 a year (for one bike, or for all bikes) if the state could reduce theft and guarantee that I could leave my bicycle outside a store unlocked and have it be there when I came back out.

As it is, millions of dollars worth of bikes are stolen each year. A few are recovered, but there is never a big effort to prevent theft, and to hunt down bike thieves once a bike is stolen.