Quote:
Originally Posted by calculoso
Pay their share? How do you figure out what a person's share is?
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Well first off your property taxes charge amortized over some period the full cost of installing sewer and power to your subdivision.
Second, using transit models a portion of those big overpasses and roads that are built to service your subdivision is passed onto the homeowner through a surcharge. Or, as has been used in numerous other cities, the highway that you use to commute into work is converted to a toll highway internalizing the cost of the road and services required for you to live out there. This isn't radical stuff. Many municipalities have already implemented these kind of incentives and they are only gaining in popularity.
The basic idea is that once something is subsidized it becomes overused. Suburban living is a very good example of that.
As you say, you are a guy who likes living out in the country. That's just great, I respect that and one day I would like to do the same. However, you should be responsible for the full-costs of that priviledge, that includes the roads you use and the utilities you require (among other things).
e.g. Garbage disposal is also much more expensive for sprawling neighbourhoods so your garbage fees would be higher etc.
Once the true cost of living out there is borne by the people who live out there then we'll rebalance and see how demanded suburban living is and apportion public funds to those areas based on the share.