I don't understand why DC's #VehicleSize #tax isn't the norm. Large #vehicles are freeloaders. Their weight accelerates pavement wear, increasing road maintenance cost. Their length reduces space available for other cars, increasing congestion. Their width increases the risk of sideswipe collisions. Their height increases the risk of fatalities & serious injuries when crashes do happen.
It's ridiculous we don't charge extra for all that.
#VisionZero #SafeStreetsForAll https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2022/06/25/dc-higher-vehicle-registration-fees/
@DrTCombs
According to a UK study, pavement wear is relative to the 5th power of the ratio of weight per axle, ie, an SUV that weighs twice as much as a Honda Civic, will do 2**5 (32) times as much damage.
@DrTCombs it’s the norm in the Netherlands. Road tax is based on the weight of the vehicle and on what fuel it runs. I’m surprised to learn that this isn’t the case everywhere.
@Threadbane @DrTCombs you want som yeeee with that haw?
@Threadbane @martijn @DrTCombs UK has a vehicle tax structure based on emissions (and to some extent overall size), a supermini can be as cheap as £20 per year to tax whilst a big Jaguar SUV will be £520. Petrol and diesel are also expensive here (similar price to NL), putting a hard limit on the size of vehicles most can afford to run..
@Threadbane @martijn @DrTCombs in UK total taxes are about $4.21 per US gallon (which is enough to discourage most of the gas-guzzlers). A used Jag can be surprisingly cheap here (due to depreciation, and fewer people being able to afford to run one). Even the SUVs here often have relatively small engines for their size (to keep them in lower tax brackets) making them unwieldy and gutless (they are unfortunately still popular with parents on school runs, at least in richer areas)
@DrTCombs electric cars are also heavier than a small car on fossil fuels. That's a problem in that tax system
@jonassalen not a problem. tax cars based on all of the dimensions that generate negative externalities. height, length, width, weight, non-point-source emissions, point-source emissions, embodied carbon. all of it.
@DrTCombs agreed. Difficult comparison though
@jonassalen not difficult at all! establish the metrics and assess the fees.
the hard part is politics, not the math.
The UK system from about 7 years ago. I think it was abandoned because it rewarded diesels which create NOx polution.
@DrTCombs @jonassalen
That's too cumbersome and will invoke people to skirt the law. Just impose the Luxury Tax we used to have. It worker perfectly. Graduated in 5K increments over 40K Tax all luxury items Boat, furs , jewelry . and mansions... Anything over 1M.
@GatekeepKen
The price of the car isn't the issue here. Correlated, sure, but not the actual problem.
@jonassalen
@DrTCombs @jonassalen
No ,I understand . But the cash a luxury tax would raise far exceeds and gross weight tax . The last thing I need is some dope coming to measure my car.
@DrTCombs
So you know, all the big gas guzzelers are Luxury SUVS That range from $60 to $150,000. That includes a ton of Pickup trucks..Which are top sellers.
@GatekeepKen Wow, I had no idea luxury SUVs and pickups guzzle gas and cost a lot of money. Thanks for the enlightenment.
@DrTCombs
No problem ,I run into a lot of people out of touch with reality.
@DrTCombs Everyone who has driven or owned a commercial vehicle is now looking at big "car" owners and saying, "First time?"
@DrTCombs but my truck and my freedom!
It does make sense; bigger vehicles = negative externalities.
In Ireland, there's a vehicle tax based on your vehicle's emissions. I don't know exactly how it's calculated, but I suspect it ends up penalizing larger vehicles - most cars here are pretty small, and most roads are narrower than in the US.