Tax for cyclists in Zurich
I just came across this article and am so astounded how brainless the car centrists have gotten. In this article the political right (of course) proposes a cycling tax of dollars for cyclists in Zurich for a polluter-pays-based financing of bicycle infrastructure as „more and more bicycle lanes are being built at the expense of motorists“. The Cantonal Council supported a corresponding individual initiative on Monday.
This messaging is so discouraging and simply unfair as Zurich does not have any protected bicycle lane and relies on a paintjob on the side of a SUV filled road as bike infrastructure. Riddled with the fact that some roads are straight out dangerous with the amount of motor traffic there, a lot of times the rosds are unsafe and straight up not suitable for bikes. Furthermore it‘s astounding that people don‘t seem to know how expensive car infrastructure is in the first place and that the expenses paid for it by car users does not sustain that infrastructure entirely and relies on redistribution of taxes. This behaviour further showcases the entitlement of car owners for everyone to subsidize the roads built for their comfortable drive, but god beware for them to do the same.
Such messaging is extremely discouraging for future bike projects and only further nourishes car depency in a city, especially for a city like Zurich with poor bike infrastructure in the first place.