New Hampshire

[74/171FAN]

Another way to take money out of people's pockets increase vehicle registration fees instead of more tolls(at least in NH)  http://www.fosters.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090617/GJNEWS_01/706179970/-1/FOSNEWS

[Chris]

I don't really understand the American hatred against taxes. Ofcourse, you don't want the excessive taxing they have over here in Europe, but you also don't want your transportation system to fall apart. At least it stays within the budget of transportation, and not some other branch of the NH government.

[yanksfan6129]

I don't really understand the American hatred against taxes.

Too many conservatives.

[agentsteel53]

eh, it's not taxes being used for road maintenance that raise the ire of the average taxpayer.  it's bigger projects, like Iraq maintenance and geezer maintenance that are far more hated.

[HalifaxTravaler]

I just read the article, it sucks that the fees are going up,But try this on for size,$200.00 to register an average car for 2 years.That is what we pay in Nova Scotia Canada.

[Chris]

I pay 76 dollars in road tax each month... That adds up to 912 dollars per year.

And that's beside a 42% purchase tax, 19% sales tax (so a new car will cost you 161% of the original price) and $ 7.7 per gallon for gas....

We in Europe, and especially the Netherlands do not understand the American complaints about road fees, gas prices and registration fees...

[Stephane Dumas]

I just read the article, it sucks that the fees are going up,But try this on for size,$200.00 to register an average car for 2 years.That is what we pay in Nova Scotia Canada.

in Quebec, it's even higher around 240$ 

[mightyace]

IWe in Europe, and especially the Netherlands do not understand the American complaints about road fees, gas prices and registration fees...

That may be because most of the people who think such taxes are outrageous emigrated here 200 years ago!

[Truvelo]

Here in the UK road taxation raises $62bn each year but it all goes into central government with only a small proportion spent on transport.

[Chris]

Yeah it's outrageous how much European governments are mooching off of motorists... and you'll get a lot of traffic congestion in return.

Some European countries do it right though, especially places like Portugal and Spain which have a very impressive transportation system.

[Chris]

That may be because most of the people who think such taxes are outrageous emigrated here 200 years ago!

You know, sometimes I think about moving to the US once. But it's not easy, how to get a good job for instance. Plus, I don't have the resources to do that now. Germany might also be an option, since housing is much more affordable there (once you cross the border, housing prices immediatly drop 150,000 dollars).

[Crazy Volvo Guy]

I pay 76 dollars in road tax each month... That adds up to 912 dollars per year.

And that's beside a 42% purchase tax, 19% sales tax (so a new car will cost you 161% of the original price) and $ 7.7 per gallon for gas....

We in Europe, and especially the Netherlands do not understand the American complaints about road fees, gas prices and registration fees...

Sweet mothers of children...WHY do you put up with that?

Where the HELL does it all go?!  Sounds like y'all need major government downsizing.  Does the common man in Europe have ANY money left over for leisure after basic expenditures?

[Chris]

Yeah, my health insurance is only $ 130 per month, and the government compensate me with $ 50 per month for that. So I'm out $ 80 per month for full healthcare coverage.

But still, we do need a smaller government. It's even worse in Scandinavia where half of the population works in the public sector.

[Crazy Volvo Guy]

That's relative, though.  I'm healthy in general, I try to be as healthy as possible.  Obviously anything can happen at any time, but I plain and simply don't see the doctor much; so healthcare, at this point in time, is not a massive cost to me.

But seriously - does the commoner in Europe have any appreciable amount of money left over for leisure activities after basic living expenditures?  I'm genuinely curious with all the taxation you guys have.  I've always known European countries have lots of taxes...but...damn.

[Chris]

Europeans have adjusted their budgets to the fact we're paying a lot of taxes and have high transportation costs. It's also a misconception that Europe is a very rail-minded continent, it's not. We do have a lot of rail, and some places, especially the denser, older cities have high rail ridership, but overall Europe is predominantly a car-minded continent.

Personally, I think most Europeans do not know better than to pay a lot of taxes. Gas prices have been high here like forever, they were in the $ 6 range way before the oil spikes of last year.

However, considering the amount of taxes motorists pay, and how much they get into return (usually around 10 - 15%), it's really a scandal, especially in countries that do little to upgrade road infrastructure, like the Netherlands, Belgium, UK, Denmark, Sweden, Norway etc.

Not all European countries are like that though, there are significant investments in roads in countries like France, Spain, Portugal, Greece, and most Eastern European countries that joined the EU.

[Alex]

High-speed tolling for I-95 is on schedule

New Hampshire's first "open-road tolls," where motorists with E-ZPass will be able to drive through at highway speeds, are on schedule to begin operating May 31, 2010.

[vdeane]

But seriously - does the commoner in Europe have any appreciable amount of money left over for leisure activities after basic living expenditures?  I'm genuinely curious with all the taxation you guys have.  I've always known European countries have lots of taxes...but...damn.

I think Europeans are less consumerist than Americans and so probably don't need as much money.

[ctsignguy]

We in Europe, and especially the Netherlands do not understand the American complaints about road fees, gas prices and registration fees...

well, to start, we Yanks DO have a long-standing tradition of dislike and/or distrust (often well-founded) of government at any level...our Founding Fathers also understood quite well that the power to tax also was the power to destroy....and that tradition of dislike of taxation has continued over the decades....

Second, i think hardly anyone can name a venture that government gets its fingers into that it does well....you usually end up with graft, favoritism, corruption, and those are the good sides!  (There was a joke back in the 90s that Americans were afraid that a government-run health system would have all the efficiency of our Postal Service...and all the compassion of the IRS (tax collectors)

So, like so many of my fellow Americans, i get a bit annoyed with ANY government bureaucrat or legislator who acts like my money belongs to them (and what we get to keep after taxes is their generosity towards us...)

just my opinion.....

[Scott5114]

Not to derail the thread, but the Postal Service is actually rather efficient. They managed to be self-sufficient for years only charging 33 cents to mail a letter. Course, it finally caught up with them, but they went for a good while there without any government subsidies of any kind.

[hbelkins]

Not to derail the thread, but the Postal Service is actually rather efficient. They managed to be self-sufficient for years only charging 33 cents to mail a letter. Course, it finally caught up with them, but they went for a good while there without any government subsidies of any kind.

Not a derail at all. The federal government's constitutional authority to build highways comes from the phrase "post offices and post roads" in the Constitution.

[vdeane]

I would have thought it comes from the necessary and proper clause (which gives the government the power to do whatever it wants, depending on the Supreme Court).

[wytout]

We in Europe, and especially the Netherlands do not understand the American complaints about road fees, gas prices and registration fees...

well, to start, we Yanks DO have a long-standing tradition of dislike and/or distrust (often well-founded) of government at any level...our Founding Fathers also understood quite well that the power to tax also was the power to destroy....and that tradition of dislike of taxation has continued over the decades....

Second, i think hardly anyone can name a venture that government gets its fingers into that it does well....you usually end up with graft, favoritism, corruption, and those are the good sides!  (There was a joke back in the 90s that Americans were afraid that a government-run health system would have all the efficiency of our Postal Service...and all the compassion of the IRS (tax collectors)

So, like so many of my fellow Americans, i get a bit annoyed with ANY government bureaucrat or legislator who acts like my money belongs to them (and what we get to keep after taxes is their generosity towards us...)

just my opinion.....

I couldn't have said it better!

[froggie]

Resurrecting a dead thread, rather than create a new one since the subject fits.

Flew through Manchester this weekend.  Noticed construction at the toll booth on I-93 between Manchester and Concord.  Looked like they were adding high-speed EZPass lanes.

[deathtopumpkins]

Are you referring to the Hooksett toll plaza?
If so, I'm surprised construction's started already. The project was advertised at the end of January with construction expected to start in April, and an expected completion this fall, per the NHDOT site, which has plans and presentations: http://www.nh.gov/dot/org/operations/turnpikes/ort/hooksett.htm

They're also studying implementing ORT at bedford on the Everett Turnpike.

[deathtopumpkins]

Although I could not attend the road meet in Portsmouth today, I did drive through the Hooksett toll plaza's new ORT lanes, which are quite nice. The state is advertising them (and the 30% E-ZPass discount) heavily, with VMSes all around central and southern NH announcing that they are now open.

One thing I noticed though is that the gantry takes a picture of every single car that passes through, with a quite obvious and mildly annoying flash. I had expected it to only photograph people without E-ZPasses. I presume for people with E-ZPasses the pictures are immediately deleted?