Would you guys and gals be willing to pay more in gas taxes and annual registration and tax fees if it meant there were less people on the road?
Think about the benefits of increasing the gas tax for example. This would increase state revenues to improve our roads and expand our networks. It would incentivise public transit which is of course already heavily subsidized. It would reduce the release of carbon dioxide, meaning it would be benefit the environment.
But most importantly it will all people like us to actually be able to drive the way God intended. And I would and do absolutely pay a premium whenever possible in the so called Lexus lanes. I’m not saying poor people shouldn’t be allowed to drive but uh buses are nice these days
Gas taxes are going up in many states right now. California has the highest tax on a gallon of gas… How is your traffic out there? Bad, isn’t it? Doesn’t seem to be pushing people into mass transit.
Mass transit doesn’t travel where people live to where they work and many areas don’t have any mass transit at all so how would this work? Gas taxes are a regressive tax…hurts the poor the worst because they drive the farthest. (Cheaper housing farther away from the jobs)
+1
States have an expectation of how much gas tax revenue is needed each year, in order to pay for road repair and the construction of new roads. Because today’s cars are so fuel-efficient, less gas is being bought, and as a result, there is a need to increase the per-gallon tax on the gas that is bought.
I doubt if we will ever see fewer (not “less” ) people on the road, but increased fuel efficiency, coupled with the use of EVs–which use no gas–means that there will be an inevitable increase in gas taxes. Many states have already increased registation fees for EVs because those vehicles use the roads, but their owners pay zero gasoline taxes.
And most of those states are charging a flat fee (I believe) each year that if you do the math is higher than an average ICE driver would pay. The $200 or so would buy 518 gallons in Florida or about 300 in California. A 30 mpg car would need to drive 15.5K miles in Florida and 10K miles in California to match those taxes. A bit of a one size fits none tax.
The solution is to buy a PHEV, as the registration fee for those vehicles is the same as for ICE cars … at least, so far. (I hope that I don’t give the powers that be any ideas…)
On average, I buy 6-7 gallons once every 2-2.5 months, in order to drive 1500-1600 miles, so I’m not paying a whole lot in gas taxes, and my registation fee hasn’t increased… so far.
Too bad it doesn’t work out that way. As you raise the cost, the number that can afford it drops off disproportionately. Considering most infrastructure maintenance and improvements are already underfunded, good luck finding a balance where fewer people can support what is needed.
But let’s take this idea a bit further. This sounds great when you’re one of the fortunate ones. But what if the Bill Gates, Musky guy and other billionaires decided they can afford to pay what you can’t? It’s all well and good until you’re one of the people being culled…but, I recently heard that buses are nice these days…
Gas taxes are on the rise already in Maryland and the roads are as crowded as ever. Increasing the cost of fuel won’t have a significant effect on cars in the road. Most of it is commerce or commuting. The commuters that use buses or trains do that already. Most workplaces aren’t on a convenient route anyway. As an example, I could have driven about 10 miles to a MARC station, rode the train to a station near DC, then taken a bus to work, then walked about ten minutes across campus from the badge check to my office. It would have doubled my commute time at least.
I really hate to ever question the math skills of almost anyone on here, but I just drove by our gas station, 87 octane is $3.859, so $200.00 divided by $3.859 is 51.8 gals, how did you get 518 gals, that would be $2000.00… (rounded up/down)
EDITED: My bad, I checked the price again today, it is $2.859 a gal… oops
I guess I should know better than to get involved in grown up talk… lol
Where is the benifit for people who don’t have access to Public Transit and never will ? I have no idea what fantasy would you live in and drive the way God intended ( what a stupid thing to say ).
I’m surprised you’re up at 3.85. It doesn’t change the math on the above, but I’m in Central VA seeing 3.50-ish, and our gas taxes are higher than TN, as far as I know. I’m semi-rural though, so maybe you’re more in the thick of the metro area?
My parents have talked about getting a Plug-In or full electric as a replacement car, would be easier to swallow the EV surcharge if it was per mile. The EV owners i know locally don’t mind paying the fee and manage to only need to charge every few days at most. Co-worker’s had two Kia Niro ev’s and probably drive’s around 3,000mi a year. Her dad’s the local EV guru and they’ve had a level 2 charger for years.
Mom’s averaging 7,000mi a year with her 2010 Prius and might go for the Prime when it’s time to trade up to a new car. Not in a rush to replace the Prius but keeping in mind that it’s 15yrs old now. It’s had new tires and TPMS fitted in the last year but otherwise just oil changes and inspections
) people on the road, but increased fuel efficiency, coupled with the use of EVs–which use no gas–means that there will be an inevitable increase in gas taxes. Many states have already increased registation fees for EVs because those vehicles use the roads, but their owners pay zero gasoline taxes.