Traffic Congestion In Brussels No Surprise When European Taxpayers Subsidise Company Car Use With $31 Billion Every Year

13 comments

  1. I would happily take money over a car, I don’t need a new one every 4 years, a good one will last at least 10. But if the cost to my employer remains the same I’d basically get peanuts in extra pay.

    Also, I make €2400 gross/month, I wouldn’t call myself a top earner

  2. If you read the article they amount the Belgian total to 2.3b, 31b is the total European amount.

    Furthermore this is written by a green NGO with ties to green parties.

    Even though it received a funding from the European climate organisation it is stated:
    “Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or CINEA. Neither the European Union nor CINEA can be held responsible for them.”

  3. “There’s better infrastructure for cyclists and pedestrians [in Brussels] now,” stated Philipp Cerny, the Berlin-based creator of the EU Mobility Atlas.

    Better: yes. Good: no.

  4. Let’s settle this once and for all so that I don’t have to see these articles every other week on reddit:

    1. A company car is still one of the most effective ways to get a raise, for the employee and the employer. Mostly because every other alternative is taxed into hell.

    2. If there was a viable solution for a larger part of the population, it would be used (trains, bikes, bus, metro, tram, speed bike, e-step, …) But the public transport is unreliable and unless you work in a large city and live nearby a station or in another large city, it’s probably too slow as well.
    Bikes could and should work better (especially with e-bikes), but they need to be made more attractive.

    3. A lot of people still need a company car for their work.

    4. Working from home should be encouraged, especially in professions where it can be done. Give the employees the freedom to choose their office days.

    5. Regulate and tax heavy traffic more. Trucks and vans are ever increasing and taking up space and money.

  5. Ah yes , of course , the priority for going green is no more company cars for the premium peasants , probably thought by the same people who shit their pants at the first mention of nuclear energy

  6. Not mentioned is the stupid subsidy Belgium gives to Eurocrats. A tax-free car purchase during their first 2 years living in the country.

    Many young Eurocrats buy their 1st car then get hooked on car culture. (Have you seen the traffic jams in the EU area)?

    Of course no cash alternative is available.

  7. oh great, another article demanding we take away the cars of about 25% of the population because the writer’s salty that they don’t have one. Ever considered that people with a company car can’t do their job without one and usually don’t have the cash to buy one themselves?

  8. Electric cars are also massively subsidized. Meanwhile, I got 0 in subsidies for buying an ebike instead of a car. But I still have to pay for the car subsidies. Enraging.

  11. It really is such a dumb system. We need fewer cars on the road, not more. And it’s perfectly feasible to achieve this.

    We need tax reforms so that getting a car doesn’t have to be the best way to get a competitive wage, and more investment in public transport.

  12. Yes I have a company car, yes it’s subsidized at 6000 eur per year. Meanwhile I STILL pay more than 3000 eur in taxes and social security per MONTH on my main job and about 75 % on my other job.

  13. Pardon me if I am wrong, but I don’t see “paying less taxes” as “subsidizing”? A subsidy would be if the state gave actual money to the company when they buy a car, while it’s just that they can deduce a fraction from the taxes (though they still pay most of it)…

    When comparing, the wage paid to a worker can be fully deduced from the company taxes, so a company car is actually less “subsidized” than the wage (from the company point of view) or other benefits.

    A company offering public transportation passes could actually deduce more of that cost than it could for a car. But for some reasons, people seem to prefer a company car over public transportions…

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