Mark Thoma:
Barry Ritholtz:
U.S. on Highway to Flunking Out, by Barry Ritholtz: Roads are crumbling, bridges are collapsing, and what was once considered one of the greatest achievements of any government anywhere has fallen into embarrassing disrepair. I am of course discussing our nation’s infrastructure. … How did this happen? Credit a combination of benign neglect and anti-tax ideology run amok. …
Since 1993, the U.S. federal gasoline tax has been 18.4 cents a gallon, which finances the Highway Trust Fund. Adjusted for inflation, the tax is now about 10 cents a gallon. …
The U.S. interstate highway system, once the envy of the world, is in mediocre and deteriorating condition today … putting the U.S at a competitive disadvantage. …
The solution is simple. Raise the federal gasoline tax five cents a year for the next five years. Index it to inflation starting in the fifth year. It's the least the U.S. can do to keep up.
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