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  1. sbrof

    0 ratings12345
    Dec 1st 2008, 19:33

    This is a great way to provide incentives for people to try other modes of transportation. This along with the NFTA Metro Advantage Program give people options in their transportation decisions. Although this is a good program I don't think I would ever use 20 dollars worth of anything per month by biking to work. It might be nice to save money and put it towards a new bike or supplies for those just starting out but in reality biking is so cheap that after you get your supplies it might not be worth staying in the program.

    I have been saying it for years. The only thing we really need to do to increase bike usage for our city is to invest in its infrastructure. If this program will help employers pay for bike locks, showers, supplies or other amenities then it could go a long way to helping take cars off the road.

  2. BuffaloBloviator

    1 ratings12345
    Dec 1st 2008, 21:18

    I love riding my bike. Always have. I even still have the one I got in third grade and I still use it.

    I love cars too. Not only are they great and fun gadgets but they have elevated our quality of life in many ways that we take for granted. Horses used to drop all over the roads. It was smelly and unhealthy. I don't think that it was a coincidence that mankind had record achievements in the last 100 years and one of the tools was the car.

    We owe everything to fossil fuels. Soon fossil fuels will be obsolete because newer technology will make them to costly and impractical. We should never loose our appreciation for what coal, oil, and gas helped mankind achieve over the past 150 years in areas of medicine, transportation, communication, building materials, food, and most importantly - energy has fueled the upward wealth of all of our citizens.

    Does this bill mean that I have to stop riding my bike because people will see me riding and think that I am anti-car, anti-energy, and that I believe in the original sin of man-made global warming?

    This bill sounds logical as far as allowing the same job related transportation deductions as regular vehicles except that to the best of my knowledge commuting to and from work has never been tax deductible in the first place. The weird thing is that this bill was crammed into that 700 billion dollar bail-out as pork.

    As an employer, I am all for bikes. I would like some clarification from Celino and Barnes about my exposure to lawsuits if an employee gets injured on a bicycle that I provide and encourage him or her to use.

    I love nature and bikes and cars and energy, and I don't think that mankind is doing such a bad job of things. Is there a club I can join?

  3. blackrocklifer

    4 ratings12345
    Dec 1st 2008, 21:27

    Bloviator- You should join a History Club, because you obviously have not been paying attention. "Mankind" is doing a bad job and most all the damage has been done during the past 100 years you cite as "record achievements" of mankind.

  4. meanoldman

    1 ratings12345
    Dec 1st 2008, 21:49

    can i get a tax break for my coal powered roller skates? on an honest note! more bike friendly streets w/ lanes that cars stay out of, and the people of buffalo should recognize it as a true mode of transportation, not a weekend hobby.

  5. sbrof

    0 ratings12345
    Dec 1st 2008, 22:15

    well from what I understand it isn't a tax break.. but money you would normally spend, just before taxes. So you still have to spend the money, just like the NFTA Advantage Program. Then again I don't understand how people get the money to use. Or does the company collect the pool and redistribute it in the form of supplies or something. No idea. Seems like it is more confusing than it should be. Maybe it is just me.

  6. sonyactivision

    2 ratings12345
    Dec 1st 2008, 22:48

    One car door opens and all your "tax savings" are out the window. This plan has to be in conjunction with more usable bike lanes, better crossings, and bike racks. Plus the DOT needs to pull their heads out of their asses and realize that it's 2008, not 1953 and that a great many people would rather commute by bike than drive on another elevated highway.

  7. MikeInWNY

    0 ratings12345
    Dec 2nd 2008, 02:07

    The government has screwed up the economy enough already, the last thing we need is another tax code.

  8. dagner

    0 ratings12345
    Dec 2nd 2008, 05:31

    Under federal tax law, commuters can set aside pre-tax income to help pay commuting costs. Employers benefit in the same way described for the bike bill. Many employers are ignorant of this, and even fewer offer the benefit.

    See summary table http://www.nctr.usf.edu/clearinghouse/commutebenefits.htm.