It’s time to pay up
It finally happened. A piece of decaying infrastructure has killed five people. Most of us said it would happen, and now, it finally has.
What is it with this province and pieces of crumbling concrete? If it isn’t parts of the Olympic stadium, it’s a bridge under construction, or now, an old rusted out overpass.
The problem, is we Quebeckers seem to think that everything must be paid for by the state. That user fees of any kind is forbidden. France, the place where the state pays for almost everything, charges users to ride their perfect highways.. 300km’s of driving will cost you about $40. But, it’s safe and well looked after.
As I suggested in a previous blog post, it’s time to implement tolls. Either take public transit, or your bike, or pay up. As a cyclist, I can assure you that the state of our roads is pathetic. We also have confirmation that our overpasses are deadly. The only real way to fix this, is to pay for it.
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There’s no doubt that further investment to the infrastructure needs to happen here…it’s one of the most notable differences between Montreal and other places I’ve lived. But I’m not keen on tolls because all they do is back up traffic and cause more pollution (for example, the infamous Mass Turnpike). Other ways of funding the improvements would be wiser…maybe increasing gas taxes?
I’d be in favor of either of these solutions, as long as its the drivers and car-owners that pay the taxes, not the city residents who are taking mass transit and walking.