Someone recently brought to my attention a 2005 article published in the Washington Monthly, a magazine that used to call itself “neoliberal” before the neoconservatives gave neos a bad name. Anyway, the article in question is called Auto-Mobility: Subsidizing America’s commute would reward work, boost the economy, and transform lives.
Flickr photo by VirtualEm.
The thesis of the article is that driving a car is no longer “a lifestyle decision.” Instead, Americans drive because “to get to work, the vast majority of Americans have to drive.” Thus, the writer argues that Congress should change tax policy and allow commuters to deduct the cost of their driving from their taxes, and, further, that the federal government should “offer tax credits that would lower the cost of commuting to work for low and middle-income employees, and would allow low-income workers who can’t afford a reliable car to get one.”
