The other thing to consider is that when LTE is not present HSPA+ runs circles around VZW 3G
Your point is just about to be invalid as Verizon has over 2/3 of their nationwide footprint blanketed with 4G LTE. So in a few months hardly any market is going to be without LTE on Verizon.
That said, HSPA+ technology itself is much faster than EVDO which is why Verizon is getting out of their way to have the entire nation covered with 4G LTE by the end of next year. It looks like they will meet and exceed that goal.