--- In [email protected], Adrian Stott <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > SNIPPED
> The proposal in 3. is not for tolls. It is for prepaid unlimited > access to a set of waterways for a given period.. > SNIPPED Obviously, there is a shorter total distance of (broad and wide > waterways) than of (all waterways". So if you buy access to only the > former, surely you should actually expect to pay less. > > SNIPPED > Changing to this principle would indeed produce "winners and losers", > and of course the losers will grumble. However, under the current > sizist regime, larger boats have been paying (a lot) too much for > years. Correcting this injustice, which means also correcting the > unreasonably (slightly) low charges smaller boats have been paying, is > surely the, er, principled thing to do. > > A canoe *would* still pay less then a cruiser, as the charge would be > payable only for the days it was in the water. Most canoes are kept > out of the water in sheds for most of the year, not at moorings. > > Adrian > > . > > Adrian Stott > 07956-299966 Adrian, I agree with a licence fee based upon accessible cruising area BUT I would find it unfair if I was charged for waterways which I would never use. E.g. I own a 40ft long narrowboat allowing me to access the whole of the connected inland waterways (I think). Under your proposal, as I see it, I would pay the full licence fee (for access to everything) (let's say this amount is £500). However, I moor on the Kennet and Avon and only ever have the time to move my boat 1 weeks boating away from the mooring location before returning. The point is that I could never use a waterway such as the Leeds and Liverpool because it is too far away. The reason I bought a 40ft boat rather than 60ft or 70ft was to save on the capital outlay - a 40ft boat is cheaper than a longer boat. My friend owns a 70ft narrowboat and is therefore restricted in his cruising area. Let's say that, under your proposal, he would get a 20% discount on the full licence fee - he pays £400 (this is less than me). However, he has more free time and, therefore, is able to cruise most of the waterways available to him. I find it unfair that I, with less actual cruising range (due to my circumstances) than my friend, pay £100 more than him. Essentially, my friend gets more cruising range for less money. To solve this problem, I think that there should be a licence fee for each waterway. E.g. you can buy a licence for "all waterways a 70ftx7ft boat fits on" (ticking them off on a form) OR just "The Kennet and Avon Canal" OR whatever. So, in the example above, I buy a "Kennet and Avon" licence and my friend buys an "all waterways which a 70ft x 7ft boat fits on" licence. So, essentially, have licences available for individual waterways. You could even include time-scales (like on the Thames) so that you could buy a 3 day licence for the Bridgewater Canal or whatever. This is a sort of re-think of my tolls idea except moving and non- moving boats pay the same but still only pay for what they DO USE rather than what they technically COULD USE (which seems to be your suggestion). Cheers, Ben
