You can do it because it’s easy, but when you file your taxes, you have to choose one to count as a tax break. In 2024, driving gave you the biggest tax break.

If government funds were used to build or finance the parking facility, I’d argue that’s taxes supporting/encouraging mixed mode commuting. (I have no idea if that was 100.00% private or not.)

It's insane to me that some countries have such high taxes that tax breaks on daily transportation choices become the most important variable when deciding which mode of transportation to use.

You should turn that around: if getting people off the road is something you really care about then make it pay.

I take no position on which mode of transportation is preferable for others to take (though I have my own preferences, to be sure).

Where I come from, taxes are comparatively low. So it's weird to see people talking about them influencing their behavior so significantly. That's a lot of power the government has... I'd rather keep my money than let bureaucrats spend it to manipulate the public's behavior.

Taxes spent on building roads presumably significant influence your behavior.

Taxing cars puts the cost of those roads more directly on the users of them.

I'm not talking about building infrastructure or paying directly for things that cost money for the government to do, I'm talking about market manipulation.

Wait till you discover how capitalists manipulate markets...

In addition to sibling: the bike is, for many people, already, 'too cheap to meter', so the tax advantage goes to the train subscription. And quite some employers either give you a train subscription, or let you deduct kilometers travelled at some rate. That rate depends on modality, but the subscription for free is usually (always) a much better deal, _if_ you really don't need that car.

Whoever is left driving cars (which is, also in the Netherlands, a large fraction), can't for instance drive up to some remote train station, and rail the rest. That's how you can get those who still drive out of their cars; those that already take trains are covered by the rules as they are.