Comments on: who’s carrying the weight? http://www.ibabuzz.com/transportation/2006/06/21/whos-carrying-the-weight/ Getting around the Bay Area with Denis Cuff and the Queen of the Road Tue, 17 May 2011 06:04:22 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 By: B smart http://www.ibabuzz.com/transportation/2006/06/21/whos-carrying-the-weight/comment-page-1/#comment-125 B smart Mon, 26 Jun 2006 20:08:00 +0000 http://www.ibabuzz.com/transportation/2006/06/21/whos-carrying-the-weight/#comment-125 Trucks pay for the highways the same way the rest of us do….with Fuel Taxes (state and federal). Theoretically, trucks use more gallons per mile than do cars. Also, the heavier the more wear and tear it will put on the roadway, but it must also consume more fuel to pull its load. Thus, the more tax it pays.

Fuel tax is a dedicated tax. That is, the revenue received from it is to be used on the maintenance and construction of highways.

]]> By: matt http://www.ibabuzz.com/transportation/2006/06/21/whos-carrying-the-weight/comment-page-1/#comment-124 matt Mon, 26 Jun 2006 14:59:54 +0000 http://www.ibabuzz.com/transportation/2006/06/21/whos-carrying-the-weight/#comment-124 While it’s unclear how much truckers contribute to highway upkeep through direct taxes and fees at weigh stations, it is clear that truckers contribute far more per mile traveled than regular automobiles. How is that, you might ask? Gas taxes. Trucks clearly burn more fuel, hence they pay more taxes. While these taxes are not used solely for upkeep, they certainly contribute heavily to the effort. Those funds are also used to site, design and construct new corridors. In some imstances, state DOTs are looking at alternative solutions which involve separating commerical vehicles from regular commuters by establishing truck only lanes (see the developing I-81 PPTA in Virginia for a good example).

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