General Road and Highway Discussion

[MidTowner]

I don't think introducing road tolls have significantly more political will than raising the gas tax.

I think discriminating based on fuel efficiency* is better than discriminating on the roads you need to drive on. And yes, we can do better than coin baskets, but its still a non trivial undertaking to install and maintain the technology, have a way to notify and collect from drivers, and enforce non-compliance.

* I also think due to the fact that we're not paying for all of the externalities of driving, and thats correlated to the fuel efficiency of your vehicle, its actually pretty fair to charge more to less fuel efficient vehicles. But I own a hybrid, so, maybe I'm baised.

Fair point about the political opposition to road tolls. I’m not sure which would be easier, raising the gas tax or implementing congestion charges. In Ontario, we’ve done a little bit of the latter, but neglected to raise the gas tax since 1992.

I think the other question is what the gas tax is actually for. If it’s supposed to price the externalities of using gasoline, I guess it’s not a bad tool for that, but then other types of fuel which have those externalities aren’t captured by it. If it’s supposed to fund the roads people are driving on, it’s destined to fail as more vehicles which are just as heavy or heavier start using the roads without burning gasoline.

Of course, it’s not a question of one or the other. Gas taxes are not paying for the entire costs of the roads we build and maintain, let alone paying for any other externalities to driving (respiratory diseases, traffic fatalities, on and on). If there is a road funding shortfall, user fees for those roads seems like a good way to cover it, while also promoting the efficient use of those roads.