Low income families not impacted by 520 tolling, finds UW study

nguminh said on January 6, 2012 at 2:44 PM

of course not, we can't afford the car. If we can afford the car, we don't have money to buy gas so we jump in the bus.

TollingImpac said on January 5, 2012 at 11:52 AM

The first "low income" kid that gets run over in Kenmore by an uninsured motorist avoiding tolls will prove the good Professor and his "focused" study very, very wrong.

joseph3286673730 said on January 5, 2012 at 9:44 AM

this is BS...!!!

hiphop said on January 4, 2012 at 11:18 PM

The average person that commutes round trip on SR 520 will be paying plenty. $7.00 per round trip times 5 days per week times 52 weeks = $1820. But that person must earn from his/her gross about $2500, per year. That is a large budget increase for most families. How does this make any sense, considering that person will only be funding HOV and bus lanes for the future, his/her alloted lanes will probably stay the same

taylorwood said on January 4, 2012 at 6:51 PM

@Shaniqua: Pretty weak retort to HomeHorthwest.

Shaniqua said on January 4, 2012 at 5:49 PM

@HomeHorthwest, you rail about the "poor education" system then you spell the plural form of "americans" with an apostrophe. Hahaha.

chevelle70ss said on January 4, 2012 at 5:34 PM

WOW homehorthwest arent you gods gift to the world

savvydude2003 said on January 4, 2012 at 5:33 PM

We still talking about tolls? You guys keep talking...me I am cruising at highway speed back and forth over 520 when I hear on the radio that I-90 is big time backed up. Please whine some more!!!! Please

HomeHorthwest said on January 4, 2012 at 2:50 PM

If you read my stuff and understand, that's great. ...but the majority of people will not understand, because they are the product of a poor education system. ... which allows more government scams, more free stuff to win elections and based on debt and deficit spending. Heck most american's cannot even calculate the mortgage payment on a car when given a calculator and a computer and web access to mortgage calculators online. Progressives are singing the song to incompetent graduates of their government labor union education system. The more poorly educated the better chance of pulling off another government ponzi scam!

underserf said on January 4, 2012 at 2:40 PM

Yup, just validates what I been saying all along - the 520 supports lawyers, doctors, college students & engineers. None of whom live in Seattle but benefit by working here. 'Sbout time they skilled workers & professionals ante up...

mikeossur said on January 4, 2012 at 2:30 PM

@jhjohnson, What corporations are you referring to? You don't think the middle class are rich do you? Not all corporations can pass the cost to consumers. The banks are regulated. They are also making record profits. The reason why the states cannot afford to pay for roads and services is because they rely almost solely on the middle class. Corporations are vacuuming all the money to China, India and Wall Street. God blesses America because it is full of fools and children.

HomeHorthwest said on January 4, 2012 at 2:05 PM

Social Economic Cost Impact of Bureaucratic Expenditures on Low Income Families, Small Business and Employment Activities. Exhibit 3 Fraud in government programs have profound impact on main street. Let us look at GAO-11-409T, the $45 Billion in fraudulent improper payment and $22 Billion in 2010 fraud under congressional incompetent oversight. What are the opportunity losses and employment cost due to government fraud, waste, abuse funded with debt and deficit? Use the SBA, Dept of Comm and SCORE numbers of $300K capital requirement for expansion to create 10 jobs. $45 Billion / $300K = 150,000 small businesses loss access to lines of credit. 150,000 x 10 jobs = 1,500,000 job loss because of a single government program’s fraud, waste and abuse in 2010 because of congressional incompetent oversight.

HomeHorthwest said on January 4, 2012 at 1:10 PM

Social Economic Cost Impact of Bureaucratic Expenditures on Low Income Families, Small Business and Employment Activities. Exhibit 2 Government Bureaucratic Expenditures have future implications of unfunded liability associated with pension and entitlements which can extend 30-40 years into the future with continuous lost opportunities, drain on financial resources, line of credit, inflation and devaluation of net wealth for main street. The unfunded liabilities have the unintended net result of reducing the tax base (Census, Dept Ag) in total employment. The total number of people employed in USA is lower today than 10 years ago even though the population increased an average of 1.2% per year.

Ken_Lake said on January 4, 2012 at 1:08 PM

"It would make it easier to justify tolls," said Plotnik about his findings.” Professor Karl Marx, let’s just spread the pain among the masses because you can’t tally your budgets! How many years did this state along with other states build infrastructures across this country without using Tolls? “The University of Washington professor added, "If we didn't have tolls, we'd probably be paying for this with sales tax, and sales taxes take more from all low income households in the region compared to middle and high income households." Funny little man that is really near sited, because we used gas tax to pay for such projects, not sales tax! The poor does pay for their gas when they fill the tank, unless they use a syphon to acquire their gas at night in the university district. What the heck they could lay off half the staff at the University which wouldn’t affect the education the students receive before graduation.

Ken_Lake said on January 4, 2012 at 1:07 PM

Now how much did the state pay for that study and would the money been use in a better fashion? Professors are the only group that doesn’t used logic when it comes to Political Science and social engineering. Yes! Professor they usually don’t think until they dump millions into the project or it fails. So what’s new when committees do all the work using the book of PC as their guide? Now where did they get their data because it looks like the chaps are digging a hole to hide another state blunders because they can’t manage their resources. Now if all the poor used the I90 Bridge instead would that justify adding tolls later to sticking the poor along with the 1% rich? Yes the Queen promised to put tolls on that bridge if only the 1% used the Evergreen Point Bridge!

quackula said on January 4, 2012 at 1:01 PM

If you $44,000 or less a year I doubt you would be living in Bellevue anyway. And if you do make that little why live anywhere in that area? it's so expensive living in the sound.

HomeHorthwest said on January 4, 2012 at 12:56 PM

Social Economic Cost Impact of Bureaucratic Expenditures on Low Income Families, Small Business and Employment Activities. Exhibit: Government Est. $1 Million traffic study impact on poor and unemployed used funds provided by deficit spending. The deficit spending by government debtors reduced the M3 money supply (Fed Res, OCC Treas), liquidly in the market, impacting line of credit for small businesses (SBA, Dept Commer). The ave. cost of starting a business that employs 5-10 people is $300K (SBA, SCORE). The $1 Million bureaucratic expenditure allocated funds to only 5 people and government overhead. That same $1 million could have funded 3 small businesses hiring 15 to 30 workers. Opportunity lost due to bureaucratic debtor deficit expenditure on M3, Line of Credit, Business Activities and Employment.

2cents said on January 4, 2012 at 12:27 PM

I don't think you can justifiably analyze the effect of one attribute in a closed system and then determine how that single attribute affects a population that is already locked out of the system. There are many things hindering low income families before they ever get to the bridge. Do they have an education which leads to a job which leads to income? Do they have reliable cars? Can they even afford transportation, including gas, licensing, taxes, fees? Do they control which side of the bridge the jobs fall on? What happens when they cannot commute? Do they lose jobs or the opportunity to have one? So you see, the toll doesn't effect low income families only because they are locked out of this closed system already. The toll can only affect middle class to wealthy families. And it affects middle class families (the new poor) greater than the wealthy. The toll is moving toward a two- tiered transportation system. One for the rich and one for the poor.

dakotanative said on January 4, 2012 at 11:41 AM

This is like the people that buy a house near the airport, and then complain about the noise. You knew when you moved or got a job that involved crossing the water, that the bridge would not last forever, and that traffic is not going to ever get better. Someday it will be time to pay up. That day has arrived.

HomeHorthwest said on January 4, 2012 at 11:30 AM

Professor Robert Plotnik's "expensive study" on traffic across 520 impacted the low income household in horrific damaging ways. This study was funded to the tune of million dollar. How many low income or unemployed people did his study impact economically? Estimate Low income basic healthcare insurance cost $5,000 per year. $1,000,000 / $5,000 = 200 low income families lost their basic healthcare coverage because of Professor Robert Plotnik's study on the low income impact. That's what debtor government must contend with, not pay glorified bureaucratic but actually getting the funding to the needy; rather than harming the needing with their useless studies of the needy and claiming they support the needy. When in actuality the people claiming to be supporters of the needy are the ones siphoning critical funds away from the needy!

chuckstr76 said on January 4, 2012 at 11:15 AM

Who paid for this study? duh

Elwood said on January 4, 2012 at 11:11 AM

This article doesn't represent the actual findings of the report. The report clearly says few Puget Sound poor will be affected (perhaps because they are unemployed, can't afford a car, have to catch a bus, or can't afford to live in Seattle or the Eastside?), but of those who don't have alternatives "the financial effect of tolling could be large" (pg 51), and that they will pay a much greater PROPORTION of their income on the tolls than other wealthier people. Translation: The silvertails just got a quiet ride to work, and the poor take it in the neck (as usual). 10 points to the 1%.

WaterGirl said on January 4, 2012 at 11:04 AM

Commuting to work costs money, especially to those who work downtown. Whether you buy a bus pass or drive to work. Using the same methodology below, a $2.50 bus fare is 1,320 a year. Isn't using the priveledge to drive to work worth more than that and shouldn't the burden of that priveledge be placed on the people who use it rather than those who don't?

hewhoo said on January 4, 2012 at 11:02 AM

Natalie Swaby's headline is not justified by the report itself. The actual report found in this story assumes that 'the poor' will use public transportation and therefore they are not affected. It acknowledges those 'poor' who do commute by car will be affected more than the 'non-poor' as a per centage of income.

bubbalmt said on January 4, 2012 at 11:00 AM

Wow, they have a legit study after only 1 week of tolls?? LOL.

kayak said on January 4, 2012 at 10:48 AM

It may not affect low income families so much but it directly affects the "middle class" that's quickly becoming low income.

jhjohnson said on January 4, 2012 at 10:39 AM

@mikeossur That's it let's tax the evil corporations (so they can pass the tax on to all us little people). Corporations for the most part, are tax collectors not payers. They have to pass the tax along in the price of the product they make or they go out of business. Porfit is not a 4 letter word it is life blood.

tolli-90 said on January 4, 2012 at 10:10 AM

Academics are so funny. Did Robert forget that I-90 is 4 miles away? Low income families will be sitting in gridlock, paying more for gas every day while 45% of 520 traffic pours onto I-90 and SR-522. Does that factor into the "not impacted" category?

Sir_Real said on January 4, 2012 at 9:58 AM

Can someone sponsor my study: "Percentage of High End Cars expected to Rise with Tolling on 520"

mikeossur said on January 4, 2012 at 9:31 AM

This guy is full of it. Does he think only the rich cross the bridge? Commuting is done mostly by middle class working people. There are 22 days in a month on average, times 12 months, times the toll,( x 2 both ways) = around 1850.00 a year. How does that not affect a commuter? That is a pretty hefty income tax if you ask me. How about if the state of Washington asks some of the large corporations to help pay for the bridge? These corporation hold most of the cash earned in this country. Stop asking the 99 percent to pay for everything.