REALITY COMES FOR ROAD SOCIALISM.

Sometimes, the only possible response is See, I told you so.  "In the case of the roads, though, well, the purpose of transportation is to move resources toward places that are productive in some way, and that makes the roads assets, if only somebody would think about pricing the use of them."  That post concluded with a question, "Is it so difficult for the highway departments to think more like investors and look for rates of return on investment?"

It's easier for a guy with a weblog to carry on about such things than it is for the highway department to implement them.

A new way to pay for fixing your sidewalks, streetlights and roads. More than a dozen communities are considering treating streets like a utility and charging property owners a fee based on road usage, but the Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce is suing to stop this.

Money to fill potholes, fix uneven sidewalks and level bumpy roads like Main Street in Pewaukee.

The Village Board in February 2021 approved creating a transportation utility fee, and since the fall, it's on the same bill with sewer and water.

That’s quarterly for single-family homeowners about $30 a year in addition to property taxes.

They're actually getting off cheaply.

Thirty inflated Biden dollars is a bargain compared to stumping up forty Eisenhower era (or earlier) silver certificates.  But the beneficiaries of public largesse react predictably when their subsidies are cut off.

"This concept is treating streets like a utility, so the infrastructure that the city is responsible for upkeep and maintaining, and the cost of that is shared by all the users," said Curt Witynski, League of Wisconsin Municipalities. "The more you use it, the more you pay."

Businesses with lots of traffic would pay much more. The usage charge is based on the number of estimated vehicle trips the property generates. That's based on estimates from the Institute of Traffic Engineers.

"If a convenience store or a grocery store or a hardware store has to pay thousands of dollars additional taxes each year because of this illegal transportation utility, they are just going to pass those along to customers," said Scott Manley, WMC.

Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce sued the village saying municipalities can only impose taxes and fees if state law allows. They’re filing on behalf of two unnamed businesses. The League of Wisconsin Municipalities argues it’s legal and says it’s not a tax but a fee.

The billable hours those lawyers generate will surely help retire those outstanding student loans, won't they?  As far as those road assessments going onward to shoppers, isn't that the benefit principle at work?  Mightn't merchants consider alternative approaches such as having Pewaukee install parking meters along the streets in front of their shops, or, perhaps, establishing a joint venture paid parking lot?  There is no such thing as free parking.

There's a lot more the highway departments could do to treat the roads they build as productive assets, rather than liabilities held forth as begging bowls for the next infrastructure boondoggle.