Excellent points, well presented. The ordinary Vermont person has no clue about the scope of transportation cost in our local standard of living. From my days operating a retail business in Lamoille County, I can attest that transportation contributed at least 25% to my total cost of doing business. For some product, such as bulk water softener salts, half of my retail price represented trucking cost. This essay nails the issue: https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Ratio-of-Transportation-Costs-to-Total-Costs-and-Total-Sales_tbl2_26900780
Excellent points, well presented. The ordinary Vermont person has no clue about the scope of transportation cost in our local standard of living. From my days operating a retail business in Lamoille County, I can attest that transportation contributed at least 25% to my total cost of doing business. For some product, such as bulk water softener salts, half of my retail price represented trucking cost. This essay nails the issue: https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Ratio-of-Transportation-Costs-to-Total-Costs-and-Total-Sales_tbl2_26900780
Pretend solutions for pretend problems. The money wasted is real, however.