Here's but one more fixes that fail example of how the initially most sensible answer leads to exactly what isn't desired, and costs money besides.
As the number of vehicles on the road increases the amount of congestion also increases.
The difference between the current congestion and acceptable
congestion creates a congestion gap. As people complain
more and more about the congestion the appropriate agency finally
decides they need to do something to get people off their back.
The short term (not so short) response to this situation is to
build roads which serves to reduce the current congestion.
The unintended consequence of this is that more roads adds to
people traveling roads which only serves to increase the
current congestion. This also serves to increase the congestion
gap necessitating just another cycle of build roads.
A better solution would be to provide more effective mass transit
systems which would get people out of their cars thus reducing
the current congestion and alleviating the need to build
roads. Which implies this example could be elaborated into
a shifting the burden structure as
the burden for addressing the congestion situation is shifted
from the fundamental long term solution using mass transit to
road building.
Many thanks to Kathleen Truman,
Environmental Studies Program, University of Nevada Las Vegas,
for submitting this example.