Argument I'm having on Facebook: hey, conservative friend, let's help you get around paying taxes!

[freethought]

7. That's an excellent argument, I wish I had thought of it

I'm originally from New England, a place known for notorious potholes, dangerous intersections, a number of decaying bridges. Go to the right places and you'll see not a paved road but a patch work of pothole patches that may extend for hundreds of yards.

Drive into one good pothole and there goes $200+ to have the cast, camber, and toe adjusted on your car. Provide, of course, if you haven't damaged a ball joint, tie rod end, or perhaps screwed up your wheel hubs. I don't want to even think of the costs of replacing an entire axle. I remember on one vehicle I owned I hit something hard enough to break a steering knuckle. It was not a cheap fix by any means.

I tend to wonder if any sort of research has ever been done on this. How badly maintained roads cost consumers in auto maintenance and repair that may otherwise be prevented.