Thanks for sending the link, Al. I'll be interested in reading the report. Yup. That idea seems to be the wave of the future, what with gas taxes stagnant and cars being more fuel efficient. We've been writing about it at my day job. Even Wisconsin looked at it.
The new term is "mileage-based user fee" - MBUF. I personally think it's a fair way to pay for transportation. At least as fair as other taxes, acknowledging that no tax is perfectly fair. Electric cars or any other alternative-fuel or high MPG vehicle still uses the roads and contributes to congestion. The big issue seems to be privacy fears. Minnesota did a trial study, giving participants the choice between a GPS-enabled, variable fee - based on the type of road they used and when they were driving - or a flat fee that was slightly higher and did not use GPS. After initial concerns, most people chose the variable fee and realized that MNDOT wasn't keeping track of their data, and most people are already allowing themselves to be tracked via their cell phones. http://www.ssti.us/2012/01/report-of-minnesotas-mileage-based-user-fee-policy-task-force-humphrey-school-of-public-affairs-university-of-minnesota-2011/ Some states have considered using emissions testing requirements to have an annual mileage check-in. Anyone getting an oil change or tire rotation could use that visit to do an annual (or more frequent) mileage check-in. No GPS required. The only problem is that annual payment can seem like a big hit all at once, whereas a monthly fee might be easier to swallow. I wrote a short article for the SSTI newsletter when Wisconsin released a report suggesting MBUFs. You can find more news and studies y typing VMT into the search box on the SSTI website. http://www.ssti.us/2012/10/wisconsin-is-most-recent-state-to-consider-mileage-based-user-fees/ While I generally favor MBUFs, my concern here at home is that WisDOT has shown absolutely no spending discipline and hasn't gotten their transportation priorities straight. Until they do that, I can't support a MBUF on top of the current gas tax.* * These views are my own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of SSTI or any other groups with whom I may be associated. Robbie Webber Transportation Policy Analyst State Smart Transportation Initiative www.ssti.us 608-263-9984 (o) [email protected] On Thu, Oct 18, 2012 at 4:19 PM, <[email protected]> wrote: > Hello Bikies: > > I only skimmed it, but there appeared to be a discussion of taxing vehicle > miles travelled as a way to supplement the gas tax. Quite a mainstream > source for what was once a topic of discussion on this list. >
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