John Petro

Can We Get a Transit Version of Cash for Clunkers?

Unfortunately, I'm not eligible for the Cash for Clunkers Program. I don't have a car, clunker or otherwise, to trade in. But this is the first time I've ever thought, "A Hummer would come in really handy right now." If I had one, I could trade the 16 mile per gallon light armored vehicle (taxicab yellow, please) for an 18 mile per gallon SUV (stealth gray?). But, like most of my fellow New Yorkers, I don't really have much use for a car. Such a pity.

It's not a surprise that Americans have raced to take advantage of what amounts to a 15-25 percent discount on a new car, or $4,500. The one billion dollars that were originally set aside for the program have been used up, meaning that about 220,000 people have participated in the program. Another 440,000 will be able to participate if Congress extends the program with another $2 billion.

I only wish that Congress could also have a Cash for Clunkers program for the nation's transit agencies. In New York City, the 2 million workers that use transit every day could certainly use some assistance upgrading old rail cars, buses, and subway stations. Investments in transit would likely have more of an impact on carbon emissions and oil dependence than marginally improving fuel efficiency through the Clunkers program.

Transit improvements would also serve to stimulate the economy at least as well as the Cash for Clunkers program. In Dallas, for example, it is estimated that an investment of $2.3 billion in the city's light rail system will result in "$4 billion in new regional economic activity, creating over 32,000 person-years of direct, indirect, and induced employment, boosting labor income by $1.5 billion, and supporting $432 million in property income."

Instead, federal dollars are going to subsidize car purchases. This is doubtless good news to those who own and work for car dealerships and for the auto companies. It is also good news for those that are in the market for a new car. However, it is far from certain that this is the best way to spend $3 billion.

To be fair, Congress already has included money in the stimulus package for transit: $8.4 billion for transit, another $1.3 for Amtrak, and $8 billion more for developing high-speed rail. But transit agencies are still feeling the strain of the economic recession and are cutting services and raising fares at the same time ridership is increasing. If Congress was going to use $3 billion for anything related to transportation, it should have focused on reducing our reliance on private automobiles rather than promoting the purchase of new cars. Americans continue to drive less, a trend that began even before the recession. It is also unclear whether Americans will ever own the same number of cars per capita as they did in the last part of the 20th century.

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Posted at 5:42 PM, Aug 03, 2009 in Transportation | Urban Affairs
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