An analysis presented to C-Tran in April stated that a business employee head tax could not generate enough revenue to pay for light rail maintenance and operation. The alternative funding proposals were all about preventing the residents of Clark County from voting on C-Tran.
It’s not as if Vancouver is known as a business-friendly environment, as evident by this proposed tax. Approximately 60,000 Clark County vehicles commute to Oregon every business day for living-wage jobs, only to pay Oregon income tax. If those 60,000 vehicles were only to pay a $6 toll round-trip, it would cost each commuter nearly $1,500 per year. The drain on the Clark County economy would be approximately $7.5 million per month. Per the Columbia River Crossing’s own documentation, tolls could be as much as $8 by 2018. Most economists don’t believe that this mega-bridge project can be built for anything less $8 billion. That’s not even close to the $3.5 billion estimate the CRC and our politicians are selling.
This replacement bridge will be built on the backs of the middle class and the taxpayers of Clark County. This revenue drain will be felt for generations to come.
Gerry Murray
Vancouver
