Industry News
RAC Foundation suggests voluntary road pricing
17th October 2007
The Government appears to have hit a brick wall in trying to convince the public about road pricing, according to Edmund King, the director of the RAC Foundation, in a speech at the National Transport Conference in London today.. He suggests that a voluntary scheme with rewards for early adopters, including cuts in fuel tax, might be the way ahead.
Reminding delegates that more than 1.8 million individuals signed the Downing Street petition opposing road pricing, King will urge UK authorities today to use the lessons learned from a voluntary road-pricing scheme piloted in Oregon, USA, where motorists who opted into the pay- as- you- go scheme received discounts on fuel duty at the pumps.
Royal Automobile Club Foundation research on the acceptability of road pricing schemes has consistently found that the majority of motorists (60%) accept the principle that it would be fairer to pay for the roads according to the time spent driving in congestion, but are worried about how this change would impact their lives.
Support for the concept of charging has increased slightly over the last four years, but support for any specific application of congestion charging is starting to wane. UK motorists also believe that any road pricing scheme should be socially just, with 58% agreeing that there should be protection for those on low incomes. When asked where finances should be reinvested, over 50% of motorists believe that finances should be directed straight back into the road network itself and acceptability increases if there are equivalent reductions in other motoring taxes.
The RAC Foundation believes the government needs to change the way the debate on road pricing is presented. Edmund King says: "A voluntary scheme that gave motorists other benefits would be a step in the right direction. No-one is likely to buy "road pricing" , but they might be interested in subscribing to "UK DriveTime" as a package of solutions which incorporates services that motorists actually want.
"Motorists who opt into a "UK DriveTime" scheme could benefit from reduced fuel duty, congestion avoidance systems, up-to-date parking information, cheaper insurance and e-call technology, which pinpoints the car and calls the emergency services in the event of an accident. The mechanics of the system would run in the same way as the Oregon trial and the RAC Foundation believes that even a voluntary scheme would have an immediate impact on congestion."
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