Tax cuts for bike commuters?
Drivers Get Tax Breaks, Cyclists Don't, Congressman Wants It Changed.
It's a paradox that has long puzzled cyclists.
Commuters who burn a precious resource — oil — to drive to work get a tax break. Those who use their own muscle power to pedal bikes to the office do not.With the war in Iraq and gas prices soaring, cycling advocates think they have found an answer that both parties can embrace: give bikers a tax break.
"Why should we discriminate in terms of tax treatment for somebody who is not polluting the air, not causing traffic congestion and not taking away from our petroleum reserves?" asked Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore.
Biking to work is cheaper than driving or taking a bus, he added, "but it's not free."
Blumenauer, 54, founder and chairman of the bipartisan Congressional Bike Caucus, has biked to his Capitol Hill office for years.
Now he hopes to give cycling commuters the same tax advantages available to those who drive or use mass transit.
Currently, employers may offer a commuting tax-exemption benefit totaling $180 for qualified parking plans or $100 for transit and van-pool expenses. The Bike Commuter Act, co-sponsored by Rep. Mark Foley, R-Fla., would extend those benefits to workers who commute by bicycle.
![photo]()
With gas prices now at $2 per gallon or even higher, "the notion of energy conservation should have some broader appeal," Blumenauer said.
Budget officials estimate the bike bill could cost as much as $114 million a year in lost revenue — a fraction of the $3.7 billion annual cost of tax breaks for drivers and mass transit users.
Cycling long has been popular in Oregon, where hundreds of miles of bike boulevards, paths and lanes take commuters and casual cyclists through leafy neighborhoods, along the Columbia River and across bridges spanning the Willamette River.
But cycling advocates say passion for pedaling has gone national.
According to the League of American Bicyclists, nearly 1 million U.S. workers commute regularly by bicycle. The federal Bureau of Transportation Statistics lists bicycles second only to cars as a preferred mode of transportation.
![photo]()
Biking's growing popularity was evident during a National Bike Summit this month in Washington. Cyclists from 47 states converged on the city for three days; it was the biggest turnout in the event's three-year history.
The summit's popularity coincides with growth of the bike caucus. The bipartisan group, established in 1996, now includes more than 100 House members. The Senate has started its own group with more than a dozen members so far.
Rep. Jim Oberstar, D-Minn., a caucus member, calls a cycling a key part of his life.
"It's my relaxation, it's my personal therapy and it's my fitness," said Oberstar, 68.
It also is good public policy, he says. In the past decade, spurred largely by the bike lobby, Congress has more than quadrupled spending on bike projects — to nearly $2 billion. That has helped build almost 20,000 miles of bike trails, put bike racks on buses and establish biker safety programs nationwide.
The Bike Commuter Act would be their biggest accomplishment yet, advocates say.
The bike caucus has sponsored the bill several years in a row, but Blumenauer said he is optimistic this may be the year.
"The momentum is building," he said, "and it's the right thing to do."
Why don't you go and ride to work?
GO BIKES! RIDE SAFE!
It's a paradox that has long puzzled cyclists.
Commuters who burn a precious resource — oil — to drive to work get a tax break. Those who use their own muscle power to pedal bikes to the office do not.With the war in Iraq and gas prices soaring, cycling advocates think they have found an answer that both parties can embrace: give bikers a tax break.
"Why should we discriminate in terms of tax treatment for somebody who is not polluting the air, not causing traffic congestion and not taking away from our petroleum reserves?" asked Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore.
Biking to work is cheaper than driving or taking a bus, he added, "but it's not free."
Blumenauer, 54, founder and chairman of the bipartisan Congressional Bike Caucus, has biked to his Capitol Hill office for years.
Now he hopes to give cycling commuters the same tax advantages available to those who drive or use mass transit.
Currently, employers may offer a commuting tax-exemption benefit totaling $180 for qualified parking plans or $100 for transit and van-pool expenses. The Bike Commuter Act, co-sponsored by Rep. Mark Foley, R-Fla., would extend those benefits to workers who commute by bicycle.
With gas prices now at $2 per gallon or even higher, "the notion of energy conservation should have some broader appeal," Blumenauer said.
Budget officials estimate the bike bill could cost as much as $114 million a year in lost revenue — a fraction of the $3.7 billion annual cost of tax breaks for drivers and mass transit users.
Cycling long has been popular in Oregon, where hundreds of miles of bike boulevards, paths and lanes take commuters and casual cyclists through leafy neighborhoods, along the Columbia River and across bridges spanning the Willamette River.
But cycling advocates say passion for pedaling has gone national.
According to the League of American Bicyclists, nearly 1 million U.S. workers commute regularly by bicycle. The federal Bureau of Transportation Statistics lists bicycles second only to cars as a preferred mode of transportation.
Biking's growing popularity was evident during a National Bike Summit this month in Washington. Cyclists from 47 states converged on the city for three days; it was the biggest turnout in the event's three-year history.
The summit's popularity coincides with growth of the bike caucus. The bipartisan group, established in 1996, now includes more than 100 House members. The Senate has started its own group with more than a dozen members so far.
Rep. Jim Oberstar, D-Minn., a caucus member, calls a cycling a key part of his life.
"It's my relaxation, it's my personal therapy and it's my fitness," said Oberstar, 68.
It also is good public policy, he says. In the past decade, spurred largely by the bike lobby, Congress has more than quadrupled spending on bike projects — to nearly $2 billion. That has helped build almost 20,000 miles of bike trails, put bike racks on buses and establish biker safety programs nationwide.
The Bike Commuter Act would be their biggest accomplishment yet, advocates say.
The bike caucus has sponsored the bill several years in a row, but Blumenauer said he is optimistic this may be the year.
"The momentum is building," he said, "and it's the right thing to do."
Why don't you go and ride to work?
GO BIKES! RIDE SAFE!
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we have to pay ~8$ per gallon!!
Ontopic: great idea
Can you guys really complain?
s!ck riding there but i´d prefer a helmet riding like that
and with my bars i´d hit every single car and pedestrian^^
seriously that looked so dangerous
Do keep in mind that infrastructure has to be in order to deal with bike traffic. Even in Amsterdam, where infrastructure for bikes is better then it is for cars, we have bicycle traffic jams.
Bottom line; good initiative!
Across the whole country, the average steepest gradient is near to zero. so pretty much you are riding flat surface 99% of the time. As well as that, your trams and intercity train services are pretty kick ass.
I go there often and I am considering moving there to work once I get my nursing degree.
Not sure about learning duch dough...
anyone with me? email your mayor!! tell him/her to make your town bike friendly
check out copenhaganize.com
cheers
In a way it is already happening in uk but its a very low key thing.
there is the cycle to work scheme where your employer coughs up some cash to buy you a new bike free of tax. which you then pay on instalments much like an interest free loan.
Also in my case I found my university will contribute towards my trabelling expenses during placemen periods ( I am a student nurse).
An I am almost sure you can claim 7 or 8 pence per mile allowance for cycling to work. It ain't much but its a start
for feul anymore.
P"
hey "turbo"
didn't we kick your A$$ in the American Revolutionary War? you had all your redcoats and we whooped YA with a bunch of farmers... yah? you want to get into a debate about american's less than stellar record against the world VS. YOURS..?
how many countries and regions did the english conquer and supress? i'm sure you've heard of the term "the sun never sets on the british empire" haven't you? you wanna go "mate"?
P"
there is a the cycle to work scheme in the uk, you get you to £1000 and you work pay for most of it...ect for more info on it check this out
www.cyclescheme.co.uk
it is really good, i work in two bike shops where they use it and lots of people use it,
(Mark Twain)
here in the uk we have a 'bike to work scheme' - we can get tax free bikes, it's brilliant. Not every employer has joined the scheme, but it's a step in the right direction.
Good luck with this.
"bikes are ace"
(literatechimp)
The only problem I see with this idea is that people who ride bikes (and do not drive cars) don't buy fuel (the government makes more tax revenue per gallon than the oil companies) or pay registration fees so they don't actually pay any taxes to begin with (road improvements/construction, and all those other wonderfully expensive things that taxes pay for). I'm all about tax breaks and smaller government, this is just something to think about.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgVTEOCVQSM&eurl
its impossible for most people to bike anywhere cos the roads are soooo dangerous
on a lighter note.. i hear polish scientist had MAJOR breakthrough recently and found the original formula/recipe to make "ice cubes". how's that working for ya..? cold soda's and frothy coffee's ay..?
P"
Good call on the tax break, so I can claim all that kraft dinner now right?