Petrol excise vs road tax

[Rorschach]

The federal government is looking to new revenue measures re the diminishing petrol excise. The more electric or hybrid cars take to the roads the less revenue they get... so far it looks like they will be taxing us for road use. Using GPS to make sure we pay what we owe.

Not sure this will be fair to those who live outside of big cities where you have to travel longer distances to get the bare essentials.
But hey when has a government last had a brain?

[Rorschach]

Has any one else caught wind of this?
I saw the story on ABC 24 yesterday....

[Rorschach]

Found this...

In an interview with ABC News on Thursday morning, federal minister for major projects, Paul Fletcher, flagged the federal government’s plan to reform the way Australian drivers are taxed to pay for the upkeep and development of roads, with a particular view to scrapping the $10 billion annual fuel excise.

The idea – and it’s a long-term view; part of the federal government’s 15-year infrastructure plan announced on Thursday – is to dump the fuel tax and instead charge motorists a “road user” fee, based on how far they travel and the level of congestion on their routes.

more here...

http://reneweconomy.com.au/coalition-po ... les-93736/

[Super Nova]

The government has become dependent on petrol excise. What will they do. They will hit us where they can where we consume. Increase registration fees or increase/add road tolls is where they will go.

Road tolls will become automatic as they are elsewhere. No need for big toll booths. Camera reading rego plates or simple electron disks in the car. Pay as you go will mean electronic tolls IMO.

[mantra]

Does anyone remember when only our registration paid for road maintenance?

It's going to be tough for those who travel long distances to get to work. They're already hit with an avalanche of tolls as well as all the other escalating taxes. I doubt that the current petrol, insurance and motor taxes are going towards the upkeep of our roads and are used in other areas. Neither state or Federal governments have a clue how to budget nor do they seem to care that their spending is all over the place.

[Redneck]

I think the user should pay!

So you travel to work long distances, then you are a big user so you should pay

The same as big trucks should pay more because of the wear and tear they do to the roads

Me as an example has a car that is over 11years old with 113000Km on the clock. ( Around 10000K /year). Should I pay the same as someone doing three times that per year? No way!

[Super Nova]

User pays is the only fair way.

Many who travel for business will be up in arms but it is the only fair way.

Expect electronic tolling technical coming to a Hume Highway near you soon.

Also expect London type congestion charging in a city near you.

[freediver]

I've long been an advocate for petrol taxes. I don't think electric cars will change that any time soon. Hybrids still use petrol.

The amount you pay should reflect the true cost you impose. For maintenance costs, fuel use is a very good indicator of the damage, and I believe the big trucks do most of it. Rural roads do cost a lot more per user. If a user-pays system leads to some rationalisation there, that is also a good thing.

Tolls are the worst option. They have to go out of their way to make the roads less convenient - fewer off and on ramps, etc - and the administrative cost is enormous.

[IQS.RLOW]

Isn't this a state issue?

It wont be long before it become "user pays" everything and tax rates will still remain the same.
This is just another govt bait and switch to extract more tax dollars and give nothing back.

The govt receives more than enough income from taxes but they spend it all and more on useless Leftwing ideological programmes. Infrastructure like roads, rail and hospitals should be the first priority out of consolidated revenue, not financing leftwing pet causes.

Shut down the waste. Start with the ABC.

[Rorschach]

I've long been an advocate for petrol taxes. I don't think electric cars will change that any time soon. Hybrids still use petrol. But not as much which is the Governments argument re them.

The amount you pay should reflect the true cost you impose. For maintenance costs, fuel use is a very good indicator of the damage, and I believe the big trucks do most of it. Rural roads do cost a lot more per user. If a user-pays system leads to some rationalisation there, that is also a good thing. Not if you live there out of necessity and cant move back to a big city where you don't need to travel far to ammenities.

Tolls are the worst option. They have to go out of their way to make the roads less convenient - fewer off and on ramps, etc - and the administrative cost is enormous.