Rantz: It’s time bicyclists paid their fair share

For too long, Seattle-area bicyclists have gotten a free pass for paying for infrastructure built solely for their use. We ought to take a page from the Oregon playbook and place a modest tax when purchasing a bike.

Oregon cyclists will be hit with a small tax of $15 per bike sold that costs over $200. The money generated from the tax will go to safety and accessibility.

Colorado is also toying with the idea. Good. We all should.

In a world where Progressives think paying taxes is patriotic, they shouldn’t have any problem with this, right? When Progressives argue we need to mitigate privilege, can I assume they’re OK paying a modest tax as they enjoy a privileged position where they can afford to live in the city and be able to bike to work, while others who are less privileged have to live far from work so they can actually afford to pay rent?

Of course not. Some bicyclists in Oregon are upset. And the bicyclists here don’t seem to have an appetite for a small tax they have to pay; they just love collecting the ones that don’t hit them the hardest.

BikePortland editor Jonatha Maus complained:

[It’s] an unprecedented step in the wrong direction. We are taxing the healthiest, most inexpensive, most environmentally friendly, most efficient and most economically sustainable form of transportation ever devised by the human species.

Well, walking is more environmentally friendly and economically sustainable. But since when did we decide not to pay extra for things that are healthy? We spend how much extra on organic foods and household cleaners? But beyond that, taxing bikes is about paying your fair share.

Right now, drivers pay for road infrastructure and improvement; but they also pay for bike lanes that they’re not using. I understand that some bicyclists also own cars and they pay for the roads, but they’re getting extra services drivers are not. Why not tack on a modest fee to help defer the costs?

Urbanists dismiss the plight of drivers who are forking over millions for transit improvements they won’t even see in their lifetime in ST3, but we should give bicyclists a pass simply because they don’t want to spend an extra $15 or so on a tax that could pay for what they actually use?

Unlike urbanists who don’t care that car tab fees are prohibitively expensive, I have some compassion. I don’t think biking should be prohibitively expensive. We’re talking about a small fee here.

It’s time bicyclists pay their fair share instead of getting a free ride.

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