Some officials around the state already get it. He points out that Florida doesn't refine any oil, and with its fixed tax rate on gasoline, profits nothing from rising fuel prices. Meanwhile, citizens are denied transportation choices. Any sober look at the numbers suggests that balancing investments is the only fair approach. Ah, but that would be a huge subsidy for transit, some say.
Economists are quick to add the impact of car-dependence on the household budget.
Just imagine capacity for building a serious transit system if those legislators found common purpose with some from the Tampa-Orlando corridor and Jacksonville, too. Readers may see that as naive, totally beyond belief. With a third of your voting population over 65, many approaching years when driving won't be an option, failure to build alternate mobility may prove to be the naive position. As the traffic grows, time is running out to find a regional plan and a way to fund it.