Would you rather pay with debt (China money), or with the income tax paid by less than 1/2 the population?
Why limit this to gas taxes, debt or income taxes? How about tolls and fees on the users? Toll roads, toll bridges, surcharges on airline tickets, etc. work well and actually charge the people benefiting from the improved infrastructure.
Neither, everyone should pay 10% tax no matter the earning and nobody should get a damn refund while not even paying in to the system! Postcard tax then becomes a reality:-)