Your New Tax Strategy: Buy Subway Cars

Big businesses get huge tax breaks by buying subway cars and leasing them back.

1 minute read

March 16, 2004, 3:00 PM PST

"Altria Group Inc. and Wachovia Corp. bought 570 New York subway cars. Wells Fargo & Co. owns more than 700 Chicago buses. And half of Atlanta's commuter rail tracks belong to Wachovia and American International Group Inc.The companies aren't running public transportation. They are just collecting $3.3 billion in federal tax breaks through leasing arrangements that Congress wants to curtail. Since 2001, 16 U.S. companies have bought transportation assets from cities through 35 leasing agreements, a review by Bloomberg News shows. The arrangements allow the buyers to save on taxes as the assets depreciate, even though they don't operate the equipment."

Thanks to Richard Layman

FULL STORY: About Wachovia's Subway Cars: Banks aren't in the transit business, but in the tax-break business.

Tuesday, March 9, 2004 in The Philadelphia Inquirer

Transportation Pennsylvania

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