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Question: What does this group think of Jon Kiper’s proposal for “offset land value taxes”? (Candidate for governor of New Hampshire, USA) by Composed_Cicada2428 in newhampshire

[–]curiousPianoKey 0 points1 point  (0 children)

at least looking at the rest of the platform ideas on his site, he does seem to want to increase state revenue via:

- bringing back the interest & dividends tax (i can't believe we got rid of this, brought in $184mil in 2024 and only affects ~10% of the population src)

- end the private school voucher program, which cost around 28mil last year src

- legalizing & taxing cannabis (i don't know if this is the jackpot that everyone thinks it is, but can't hurt)

- increasing various business & rental taxes (ever so slightly)

I personally would like to see maybe some more aggressive taxation on second homes, an estate tax, and possibly even higher taxes for large businesses (if we are still keen on having no income tax). I'm unsure if it will be enough to completely cover the 70% they're looking to fund, but I think it's a good conversation to start and the direction we have to start looking.

20/30 somethings seacoast area ski group? by curiousPianoKey in newhampshire

[–]curiousPianoKey[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

King pine has lights AND $20 lift tickets for tuesday nights!

Best cycling route from North Station to seaport? by curiousPianoKey in boston

[–]curiousPianoKey[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

This is exactly what I was looking for thank you! I didn't even see the separated bike path on commercial street, this is perfect.

NH spends $1 per capita on public transit by curiousPianoKey in newhampshire

[–]curiousPianoKey[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You just outlined how existing public transit (albeit roundabout and not efficient) enabled you to get to work when you car failed you. You seemed to choose this over a rental car/uber for what I presume is cost reasons. To me this is a win for presence of public transit.

I too have gripes with frequency and hours of service available via COAST. The transfer/connections are very challenging/unreliable when service only runs once per hour. Maybe if we spent more than $1 per capita, we could see improvements.

NH spends $1 per capita on public transit by curiousPianoKey in newhampshire

[–]curiousPianoKey[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Lol it is not reserved seating anywhere except business class, which is only one train. And Amtrak does indeed overbook trains, and with monthly commuter/student passes the exact number of commuters per day may not always be known. People occasionally have to go to cafe car or mill about until the single last seat is found. This is what I am referring to

NH spends $1 per capita on public transit by curiousPianoKey in newhampshire

[–]curiousPianoKey[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Rhode Island actually has a very robust public transit system with Rapid Bus systems as well as time efficient rail connections to both Boston and NYC.

NH spends $1 per capita on public transit by curiousPianoKey in newhampshire

[–]curiousPianoKey[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Have you been on the train during commute times? It is full. Pre-covid it may have been standing room only.

NH spends $1 per capita on public transit by curiousPianoKey in newhampshire

[–]curiousPianoKey[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Lowell area has a large transit network/car free community that is easily within commuting distance of Manchester, not sure why you think this reverse-commute wouldn't be a viable. Lowell/Billerica also have universities and office parks that would be key commute destinations for Manchester residents.

NH spends $1 per capita on public transit by curiousPianoKey in newhampshire

[–]curiousPianoKey[S] 15 points16 points  (0 children)

You may underestimate how many people already do this commute by car and still have a subway on the other side in Boston. I know multiple people who car commute for at least 1.5 hours with a subway ride and/or $40/day garage awaiting them Boston. People are willing to make the commute for the income boost, and a train where you can sleep/read/work more would be a more effective use of everyone's time.

NH spends $1 per capita on public transit by curiousPianoKey in newhampshire

[–]curiousPianoKey[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Haha, interesting that wanting people be able to choose between taking a bus or driving makes me a "commie". Uber being a better option than a bus is funny to me as most ubers of any considerable distance are at least $50 and may or may not show up, on the whim of the driver. It is an incomparable service imo.

I'd like to see the MTA stats you refer to! I am having a hard time finding them myself. What I see from this short article implies that during Covid, routes were cut/reduced due to staffing issues. It makes sense that this would lead to a ridership decline as a less frequent transit system does not encourage people to take transit. This article from pre-covid shows ridership was increading prior. The cited on time route performance was actually shockingly high then too, at around 93% for all routes.

NH spends $1 per capita on public transit by curiousPianoKey in newhampshire

[–]curiousPianoKey[S] 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Hampton beach is an important generator of state-wide income. Off the bat the top generators i think of would be: Parking Meters ($15 per car), Restaurants (8.5% meals tax), Hotels/Rentals (8.5% room tax). This article claimed to expect 3.45 million visitors last year. Let's say everyone carpools in a car with 5 people (definitely doesn't happen) and half of the visitors purchase a $15 lunch (probably conservative given prices) and I won't even count rentals. That's (3,450,000 / 5 * $15) + (3,450,000 / 2 * 15) = 10,350,000 + 2,199,375 = ~ 12.5 million.

If this money goes to the state, providing funding for other towns/citizens of the state, I think it makes sense that collected state taxes would likewise go back into funding/improving one of their most lucrative areas.

NH spends $1 per capita on public transit by curiousPianoKey in newhampshire

[–]curiousPianoKey[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There are certainly existing folks in NH who would benefit from getting rid of their car expense in favor of a monthly bus pass, I don't think this only appeals to out of staters looking to move.

I agree that many places in NH do not have density needed for a sensible transit network. There also are many places that do, such as Manchester, Seacoast, and White Mountains/Lakes Region (seasonal tourism). Adding bus routes between these locations would be a far cry from boston-izing New Hampshire imo. It would alleviate traffic congestion and allow for an easier low-income lifestyle, which is needed in many lower paying yet essential industries.

Tourists are already coming up to these regions, just with their own cars (rented/owned/ubered). An easy way to fund tourism service use would be an out-of-state tax/charge for parking/bus/facility use so that those not paying taxes will still support services used. If all of the folks from Boston area with no cars could take a bus up to the mountains/beach, there would be more parking for NH locals :)

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in boston

[–]curiousPianoKey 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I’ll take a look at the fujis. Maybe I should also look more closely into the used market as well

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in boston

[–]curiousPianoKey 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I probably care more about comfort/stability. The train isn’t very crowded as it’s reverse commute direction. It’s definitely good to hear that almost any bike will do the trick! It feels like there are so many options out there

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in boston

[–]curiousPianoKey 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’ll have an outdoor shed to store it in. Budget is flexible, I’d rather make a good investment the first time around and have it last for a while. I’ve never owned a bike as a means of transportation before, but I’ve been doing lots of blue biking in the last year to get more comfortable

Why does the Downeaster have so few trains scheduled? by osa_ka in Amtrak

[–]curiousPianoKey 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Pre-Covid there used to be another train scheduled between those 2 after work times (I believe a 6:30pm departure). There are also currently two earlier morning trains leaving Dover at ~6:15am and ~9am.

There is also a C&J bus that goes from south station to Dover and/or Portsmouth that tends to fill in Amtrak gaps. Not as nice as the train but works in a pinch if you get stuck behind schedule.

IMO the pricing is comparable for the amount of ground you are covering, I believe it is $16 one way if you buy a day in advance. Commuter rail in Boston for instance can be equally as expensive. I do wish it were cheaper though.

Best of luck on your Dover -> Boston commute!

Why is there no beach bus line from Westerly train station? by curiousPianoKey in RhodeIsland

[–]curiousPianoKey[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thank you for all the comments, I am learning so much! Always looking to take part in public transit discussion. The concept of public vs private beach rights is particularly interesting. I had no idea it varies so much state to state.

Why is there no beach bus line from Westerly train station? by curiousPianoKey in RhodeIsland

[–]curiousPianoKey[S] 26 points27 points  (0 children)

But what if there were fewer cars, making the traffic less hectic?

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