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The question of whether drivers or transit users are more heavily subsidized is a complicated one.

No it really isn't. The precise amount of the subsidy for each mode is a complicated question, but the direct public subsidies to mass transit are so enormous (70-80% of total costs, and about 70-80 cents per passenger-mile) that they swamp all other factors.

If you want to know why transit users are subsidized, you need only shut down Metro Rail for a couple of days, and examine the impact on the nation's roadways.

But I wouldn't advocate shutting down Metro rail cold turkey. Land use and transportation patterns in the DC area over the past 30 years have developed in accordance with the growth of Metro rail, so the sudden elimination of Metro rail would be very disruptive. Instead, subsidies could be gradually reduced, giving residents and employers time to adapt. Metro rail has not stopped the suburbanization of the DC area. It has merely slowed it. The most recent Census shows that the outer suburbs have continued to grow much faster than the District and the inner suburbs. Gradually phasing out subsidies to Metro rail would accelerate that trend.

by Bertie on Aug 8, 2011 2:10 pm • link • report

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