Dear Editor:
Every day lately, I’ve been coming home to finding up to five campaign flyers in my mail, the majority of which are attacks on campaign opponents. Where I would normally shrug these off, I’ve seen a considerable number of them criticizing the long overdue need to have increased the tax on gasoline last year. The gas tax increase was needed to support the New Jersey Transportation Trust Fund. It is used to finance both maintenance and reconstruction and enhancement of not only roads, but transit, sidewalks, and bicycle lanes. Part of infrastructure changes these days include ensuring mobility for disabled individuals. Many disabled cannot drive, and cannot afford to be driven everywhere. Consequently, the walking environment needs to be able to accommodate these groups as a matter of equity and social justice. Of all these modes, only motorists are taxed. It is a user tax, meaning that the more you use the system, the more you pay. The last time the gas tax was increased in New Jersey was in 1988 (the year one of the candidates most critical of the gas tax increase was born). The purchasing power of money has fallen in half since then. Whereas travel in New Jersey has increased 30 percent since 1988, the amount of fuel consumed has only increased 7 percent, due to increasing fuel economy. Going forward, increased fuel economy and electric vehicles will further reduce the yields on a gasoline tax.
In 2002, Governor McGreevy pulled the plug on a planned gasoline tax increase of 8-12 cents because he felt the economy of New Jersey couldn’t afford it. Gasoline prices then nearly doubled and the economy survived. Instead of fixing the problem during his administration, Governor Corzine began the practice of borrowing to fund transportation. Governor Christie took no action to improve the revenue issue until July of last year, when he was forced to shut down all state funded transportation projects in the state, due to the system only being able to pay its debt servicing. The full costs of the deferred maintenance/rehabilitation and the cost of re-starting projects from that several month period have yet to be fully understood.
The gasoline tax increase that was necessary costs the average working person slightly more than $100 per year. Since they tend to drive less, this user tax has far less impact on the retired, and none on groups that rely on transit or walking. A significant portion of gasoline tax in New Jersey is also borne by people from out of state, as a substantial amount of travel in New Jersey comes from those passing through.
Even with this new tax in place, the cost of gasoline in New Jersey remains at about the national average for gasoline, and is 12-19 cents per gallon cheaper than New York, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania. Gasoline in New Jersey is also 68 cents per gallon cheaper thank California, and is $1.07-$4.09 per gallon cheaper than any other industrialized nation in the world.
My advise to my fellow voters is understand these facts when voting in the primary. Transportation funding in New Jersey has been undermined by both political parties in exchange for sound bites that defer rather than solve real problems. Many of the candidates for elected office this primary either didn’t have the courage to take desperately needed action when called upon to do so, or have been critical of those that did. I also recommend to my fellow voters to exercise your right to vote during this primary election, rather than let apathy win.
Gordon Meth, P.E., P.P.
