Congestion pricing is necessary

Suffice to say, I’m entirely with Ryan Avent on the question of congestion pricing. Some of the worst and most frustrating hours of my life were spent inching through horrible congestion. I think congestion pricing revenues directed toward creating alternative modes of transportation such as better busing systems and light rail makes enormous sense.  This will also help anticipate more expensive gasoline.

Coupling congestion pricing with a gas tax would do even more to reduce congestion for commuters. Revenues from both could go toward mass transit systems. Obviously there are a number of political hurdles to cross when the policy results in people spending more money at the outset. The positive gains for politicians when people suddenly realized they faced much better commute times and much more efficient mass transit options would payoff later down the road.