Road pricing back on the agenda

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Each registered owner reports the milage every 6 months, gets sent a bill. Random checks to ensure compliance. Job done.

Easy enough to install a switch to turn the odometer off.

 

[Saul Goodman]

There's already a system in place that ensures people driving in congested areas and those with bigger cars pay more. It's called fuel tax. They're just getting upset because people are buying electric cars and dodging the tax. A simple solution would be to make the likes of Amazon pay their taxes, but, as usual, its the least well off who will suffer.

 

[Spymaster]

A simple solution would be to make the likes of Amazon pay their taxes, but, as usual, its the least well off who will suffer.

Or just start fining cyclists £100 for each light they're not displaying after dark. They'd make up the shortfall in a couple of days.

 

[moochedit]

It would use the milometer to track distance driven, and a cryptographically secure radio beacon (as per the paper I linked upthread) to track entrance/exit of the various zones.
Only if you're operating a flat-fare scheme, which would be too much of a slegehammer to be politically possible.

Fair enough. At work so can't read every link etc at the moment.

 

[MickiQ]

There are several means of doing it (all of which will end up with chancers fiddling them), black boxes in cars, toll booths, issuing an annual bill based on your odometer reading. However has others pointed out this is being driven by falling revenues and not environmental concerns (though it will no doubt be sold on that basis). There are plenty of other ways for the state to raise taxes, this is being proposed because it might very well be considered more politically acceptable than others. There is no sound reason that all taxes cannot be raised from income tax other than no politician is willing to do it.

 

[SpookyFrank]

Why worry about what sort of road? Simply charge a flat rate per mile. Easy to administer, no privacy worries.

Because rural folk may have no viable alternative to travelling by car.

 

[weltweit]

What would the objective of this tax be?

 

[kebabking]

What would the objective of this tax be?

fill a hole in the Exchequer.

 

[weltweit]

fill a hole in the Exchequer.

A lot simpler then just to double road tax.

 

[weltweit]

Or better, assuming government wants to encourage us into EVs, increase petrol and diesel duty by the same amount. EVs won't have to pay that, hence motivation to switch.

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Or better, assuming government wants to encourage us into EVs, increase petrol and diesel duty by the same amount. EVs won't have to pay that, hence motivation to switch.

It’s cos so many people are driving electric, with loads more to come that they need to raise some dough cos petrol tax receipts are falling and will continue to fall. Increasing the cost of fuel will only push more people towards electric...