Tax on the sale of bicycles: 9.75% in Los Angeles!

Guess where a big chunk of that money goes? To pay for roads!

Tax the income of cyclists? Done! Guess where a chunk of that money goes? To pay for roads!

Scott, do you know what percentage, more or less, gas taxes pay for our roads? Depending on how you calculate it, gas taxes and car user fees get close to paying for HALF the expense of providing roads for the public to use. Guess where the other half comes from? General revenues, bonds, sales taxes – funds that everybody has to pay for, regardless of whether they own a car or not.

So, now that you fantasy has been delivered, what say you?

“The City Council’s Arts, Parks, Health and Aging Committee agreed this morning to prohibit smoking within 10 feet of restaurant patios, gardens and decks. “This is a big step forward,” said Councilman Tom LaBonge, whose district includes parts of Hollywood, Silver Lake, Koreatown and North Hollywood.”

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2009/12/smoking-ban-for-outdoor-restaurant-seating-backed-by-la-council-committee.html

Tobacco smoke bad, Car smoke good.

Flawed logic.

Cyclists are guaranteed their place on the streets. That does not mean that motorists go where cyclists go.

Do motorists drive cars on bike paths? Not legally. Do motorists drive cars on sidewalks? Sometimes but it’s also illegal.

The oft quoted “cyclists have all the rights and responsibilities…” screed leads people to assume that it is that simple. It’s not.

Cyclists have the best of three or four worlds and there are many exceptions.

Cyclists are, in many cases, permitted to ride on sidewalks with peds. Motorists are not.

Cyclists are permitted on 1000 miles of state highway. Pedestrians are not.

Cyclists enjoy access to transit only lanes. Peds and motorists do not.

Cyclists ride without registration or operator license or insurance requirements. Motorists don’t.

In other words, the law is complicated, imperfect and sometimes full of contradictions.

But the challenge here is the City of LA’s exclusion of cyclists based on the old tired “It’s for your own safety.” It’s not about the Festival of Lights, it’s about never, ever allowing the exclusion of cyclists to become an acceptable solution when addressing to public safety.

See you on the Streets!

I’d vote for the street festival dwp light show, and toss in equal days for pedestrians, cyclists, and those in cars. 2 cents.