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Originally Posted by ardecila
^ Absolutely I would vote for new revenues. It would depend on the details though. I think the sales tax is already overburdened, any higher and it will continue to suck business activity out of outlying neighborhoods. It is just one more reason why the South and West Sides are food and retail deserts, we should not make this problem any worse.
On the other hand I think congestion pricing is much needed especially on the expressways (incl. LSD) and the central area. Use the revenue to fund 20-minute service on all Metra lines; this is the cheapest and fastest way to extend high quality transit to areas that don't have it, at least in Cook County. Also roll out speed cameras on a much wider basis, including expressways. Put 3/4 of the camera revenue into a lockbox for transportation purposes, and the other 1/4 into a lottery for drivers that don't have any violations. In order to sell this to voters you'd probably need a specific list of projects like Measure R in LA.
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I agree with you regarding both the sales tax and new revenues. In addition to what you mention, I’d add an increase in the city ride sharing tax. But even with these new revenues, we’d still need a large tax increase.
The best would be a city income tax; say 1% on incomes between $50,000 and $150,000 and 2% above that. But that would require approval from Springfield and maybe even an amendment to the state constitution. So that leaves real estate taxes. It’s hard to imagine Chicago aldermen passing a large real estate tax increase, but if voters approved it in a referendum, then I think they’d do it.
I also agree with you regarding the revenue going into a dedicated lockbox, so that could only be spent on approved transportation projects. The lockbox would be required to have an annual audit.