Car Tax Lunacy

I am assuming that most Montrealers have, by now, heard about the ridiculous car tax that our incompetent city bureaucrats, led by the mercurial Gerald Tremblay, want to impose on vehicle registrations of the residents of the island of Montreal.

There are so many problems here that I hardly know where to start!

For one, Mayor Tremblay wants us to believe that they still don't know how much this tax amount is. Come on. They should have some more respect for the residents of this once great city. Clearly, they have a specific amount in mind and have figured out that increasing each registration fee by X amount of dollars would raise the amount of money they're looking for. I can't believe that this opacity is what passes for "accountability" these days. I can't believe that Montrealers simply shrug their shoulders and move on after hearing this. They should be up in arms!

Mayor Tremblay has also shown us that he either doesn't read the news or believes he will be spared the fate of former Toronto mayor David Miller who, as the article points out, lost his re-election bid as a direct result of increasing the vehicle registration costs in Toronto by $ 60. Hopefully, Tremblay will soon have more time to ponder this lesson when he loses the next election.

An important point that shouldn't be lost on the readers is how unfair all of this is. The city claims it needs the funds to improve our public transit system. Has it not occurred to them that a large portion of the users of this system are NOT residents of l'isle de Montreal but instead live in Laval or the South Shore? Does it not make you angry that, through these new taxes, we will be subsidizing the transportation of non-residents? Why not share the cost and make it more bearable? Unbelievable.

Also, shouldn't the users of a system pay for the true cost of that system? If the public transit system needs more funds then why not increase the rates for those using the system, or at least have them share it?Alternatively, I would like to know why I am paying $260/year for a vehicle registration when there are, literally, hundreds of potholes in the streets of Montreal that cause vehicle damage on a regular basis? I wonder how everyone would feel if the city imposed taxes on public transit users to fix potholes? You can see how ridiculous this situation is.

I am all in favor of public transit systems as they improve efficiency, economic activity and reduce smog, noise pollution and traffic jams.

What I am not in favor of, is a city bureaucracy who's problem solving skills set consists of two words: TAX THEM.

Make your voices heard!

Contact Mayor Tremblay and let him know you won't stand for this lunacy and that he will lose your vote if he proceeds in this manner!