Fare tax credit may pump life into streetcar
I, apparently along with many more Atlanta-area residents, have never ridden the Atlanta Streetcar (“Is it worth your $1? Streetcar struggles,” News, April 23). The article’s question, while certainly relevant, undershoots the larger question of whether the streetcar is worth the $98 million spent on it and its continuing costs. As the project seeks to find an identity as an economic developmental tool, a transportation aid, or just another welfare program, the significantly decreased ridership when the fare went from “free” to $1 may yield a clue. If the city of Atlanta follows governmental trends around the country, the likely course toward increased streetcar usage would be to continue the $1 fare to board the streetcar (to avoid designating the charge as a mistake), but to institute an “unearned-fare tax credit” of $2 that’s paid to riders when they exit the streetcar.
GREGORY MARSHALL, MARIETTA
HOT lane another example of bad gov’t
The conversion of the I-85 HOV lane to the current HOT lane is another example of a government program that worsens a problem and sucks money out of citizens pockets. The HOV lane was created to encourage carpooling (two-plus required for entry), reduce the number of cars on the highway and air pollution. The HOT lane pushed the “ride free” occupancy up to three and created a situation where cars with one occupant can enter for a price. A price that was not supposed to reach $5 one-way, which now is often at or above $10 one-way. Net effect; more cars on the highway and those who can afford to pay shifting into the HOT lane. A 19.6 percent increase in HOT lane usage but more cars on the highway, more pollution in the air, and more tax money for government.
JIM HOBEN, DULUTH
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