----- Original Message ----- From: "Mike Stevens" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Monday, February 12, 2007 10:05 PM Subject: Re: [canals-list] Re: Proposed new car tax (OT)
> That's what "revenue neutral" would mean in overall terms. But in > individual terms there would be winners and losers. For example, roads in > towns would be likely to be priced higher than country roads, making it > more > expensive to drive in towns and cheaper to drive in the country. > Personally > I think that would be a very good thing, which is one reason why I support > road pricing. How do you deal with the fact that it incentivises local authorities to create or fail to alleviate congestion? > > Also if road-pricing depended on tme of day as well as location, then the > prime congestion-cause, thw almost totally unneccesary school run could be > priced out of existence, returning to what used to be the norm of children > walking to school, which would also be better for their health. > The problem I have with this is I can't see how it will work on a personal basis; my work takes me around Scotland more or less at random. I can't see how the information will be available to allow me to work out how much any particular journey will cost, or how I can price a job on this basis. If I happen to be in the wrong place(s) at the wrong time(s), oops, that journey just cost a lot more than yesterday's very similar one. There is a current fad for "20 mph when lights flash" signs around schools, which seem to be flashing for most of the day; hardly ever see actual pupils when they are flashing though- probably they represent potential "expensive road" times. I am also unconvinced that walking to school through a damp, freezing cold winter is really good for you. There are reasons why in this supposedly lethal and polluted world we live in, infant mortality and life expectancy keep getting better. -- Niall
