1.8 million people recently signed an online petition against the idea of introducing road-pricing. Basically, motorists would be charged on a per mile basis to use popular roads at specific times of the day.
UK Government says no decisions have yet been made on introducing road pricing. Yet £500m ($900m+) is being spent by the Highways Agency to install communications equipment needed to make road pricing a reality. Another example of government policy introduced through stealth.
This is a big issue where emotions could easily escalate. As a motorist who needs mobility to get on with life and business, I understand why so many people signed the petition. I also share the immense frustration of many motorists who feel government targets them to raise soft taxes.
However, in recent years, UK roads (certainly southern England) have become so congested at popular times, that its a lottery determining how long it will take to get from point A to B. The reality is there are too many cars on the road and the physical constraints of the UK cannot support the freedoms currently provided to drivers.
If the status quo isn't sustainable (in fact the problem continues to grow) and building more infrastructure just encourages more of the same problem, then what other viable solution is there to imposing economic deterents to change motorists behaviour?
Unpalatable perhaps, infuriating maybe, but unless someone knows how to turn back time, where's the alternative?
graeme
3 Comments
I agree, personally, with targeting motorists. I think the number of people who really need their cars is a fraction of the number of people who claim to need them. I know a family of five who have never owned a car of their own (when the children were toddlers they shared one with two other siblings for the purposes of visiting mobility-limited parents in Cambridge, but it was sold after a few years). They live in Hackney, both parents work, and the children have a variety of extra-curricular activities. Cars are NOT as vital as people choose to make them.
However, and this is a big however, I disagree very strongly with charging people -- even motorists -- money which then just disappears into the government's budget vortex. Taxes on gas and motoring should be dedicated, and they should be dedicated to improving the infrastructure for other ways for people to get around -- bike paths and transit. There is no point in penalising people for one sort of behaviour if you don't make alternative behaviours more attractive to them at the same time.
Hey you know AdGuy always gets the last word! ;)