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JUNE 2008 NEWS

Florida - "The new SunPass Mini goes on sale Tuesday"   newspaper.com - "Illinois Toll Road Overbills Wisconsin Drivers"   " 183A toll north of Austin, Texas to go cashless".

Cambridge Toll - Déjà vu
The Daily Telegraph has the story from last Monday (though to be fair, the other nationals have not bothered to report this blow to national road pricing plans) - "Cambridge is the latest to drop pay as you drive scheme plans".

"Credit" for new motoring tax
The AA motoring boss says that it was he who suggested to Gordon Brown "the principle of taxing vehicles linked to their CO2 performance" - Guardian Comment - "Apply the brakes on retrospective tax". It is difficult to say which is more amazing. Is it the proposal to do this through increasing a fixed tax which does not vary with the amount of fuel used? Or is it that the AA seems to think that this will give them brownie points from drivers? Though on second thoughts would any self respecting Guardian reader travel in a car?

USA Roundup

Tennessee - "Toll roads opposed"   Texas - "Toll agency going after rental car drivers"   Florida - "Broward County: County joins with Collier to oppose Alligator Alley lease".

ABD welcomes Driver's Alliance
The Association of British Drivers have issued a press release welcoming the creation of a new driver's group. The group is being formed by Peter Roberts of petition fame who is also an ABD member. What is not clear is how the two groups will relate to each other.

Comparison of Chinese and American fuel prices

China Stakes - "China Driving: Lower Gas Prices than in the US, But Higher Costs". The writer suggests that China should raise gas prices and get rid of tolls. That was the Chinese plan till quite recently, but as various people benefit from corruptly run tolls and the Chinese have both the Europeans and the Americans urging them to have even more tolls, it is likely that the Chinese system will continue to subsidise the inefficient use of fuel and increase vehicle emissions.

French Truckers protesting again
Paris is today's target for truckers who are unhappy about fuel costs and plans for more and higher tolls.

Review of Troll stock

FN Arena - "Austock Still Buying MIG After Asset Tour".

Some complaints about Singapore tolls
Suggestions include a) that congestion is caused by "unbiquitous road works, tree pruning and numerous traffic lights" and traffic lanes being blocked by taxis and other vehicles waiting (one reason for waiting is the ERP system) and the issue of more licences; and b) drivers and businesses might prefer congestion to increased ERP tolls; and c) that "the new ERP charge at Fullerton Road will only divert traffic .. and worsen the congestion .. Already, office workers are finding it difficult to leave the area because of the congestion." - Asia One - "Taxi evening surcharge in the city should go"   Asia One - "Policies on ERP and COEs seem contradictory"   Today Online - "Will ERP mean ‘Every road pay’?".


Sunday 29 June 2008

Irish drivers to be tagged

Sunday Post - "Breaking down barriers". At one time Eire was known as the Irish Free State, perhaps it should now be renamed the Irish Tolled State.

USA Roundup

Pennsylvania - "Turnpike lease matter of numbers"   Alaska - "Knik bridge questions"   Massachusetts - "Toll Insanity"   Virginia - "Two Options Left for Transportation Fix"   Oregon / Washington State - "COLUMBIA RIVER CROSSING"   Pennsylvania - "Report suggests PennDOT can manage itself better".


Saturday 28 June 2008

Lib Dems complain that their road toll plans are ignored by the Press
Part of a letter in today's Indepednent from the Lib Dem Shadow Transport Secretary - "It was barely two weeks ago that Nick Clegg and I launched a radical transport policy that commits the Lib Dems to the introduction of trunk road charging, a surcharge on domestic flights, the building of a high-speed rail network, and the undoing of much of what Dr Beeching did in the 1960s. By any accounts, these are far-reaching proposals, but sadly they went unreported by your paper.".

USA Roundup

Other stories - Texas - "Northeast Loop 820 expansion stalls again"   Oregon / Washington State - "Interstate 205 bridge over the Columbia River may get tolls"   North Carolina - "Bond or toll proposed as choices for new I-85 bridge"   Texas - "Trans-Texas Corridor changes direction"   Oregon / Washington State - "Columbia Crossing: a bridge too expensive?"   Texas - "Possible toll road at U.S. 59".


Friday 27 June 2008

The root cause of congestion on roads, and more trival things like lack of water

Sydney Morning Herald - "Sick of the congestion? Time to talk about immigration".

Slovenia upsets Croatia

Bloomberg - "Slovenia Makes You Pay 500% More to Drive to Croatia on July 1".

USA Roundup

Other stories - Massachusetts - "Busted Mass Pike toll collectors arraigned"   "N.J.-to-Pa. bridge tolls may be $5 by fall"   Hawaii - "Council may study congestion pricing"   Florida - "Leasing our roads is highway robbery"   "Pennsylvania lawmakers scrutinize proposed 75-year lease of turnpike"   New York - "C.B. 1 shifts gears on greenway"   New York - "Mike Bloomberg pays back GOP for congestion pricing plan support"   California - "Stronger emissions plan urged"   New Jersey / New York - "Traffic declines at Hudson River crossings"   "Florida DOT Reissues RFQ for Alligator Alley".

Manchester Toll meeting
The ten Council leaders in the Greater Manchester area meet this morning to discuss the Government's acceptance of the TIF submission that was made by AGMA and the GMPTA last August. For more details see the Manchester news page.

Finnish plan to toll Russian trucks may not be legal

Newsroom Finland - "International law scholars shatter Finnish lorry fee proposal"   YLE - "EU & Finance Minister: Truck Tolls Impossible".

Humber Toll - Views sought

BBC - "Views sought in bridge toll study". Some info on how to submit views - North Lincolnshire Council.


Thursday 26 June 2008

Diplomats' bill
MPs were today told by the Foreign Secretary that diplomats owe ten million pounds for unpaid London "congestion" charges, of which one quarter is owed by America - AP - "US Embassy in London's unpaid road tolls"   Bloomberg - "U.S. Diplomats Owe London $4.7 Million in Unpaid Traffic Fines".
The details of the Ministerial statement-
"The number of outstanding fines incurred by diplomatic missions in the United Kingdom for non-payment of the London congestion charge since its introduction in February 2003 until 14 May 2008 was 175,482. The table below shows the 10 diplomatic missions with the highest value of outstanding fines:"

Mission	Number of fines outstanding	Value (£)
USA	23,188	2,347,205
Japan	13,062	1,334,560
Russian Federation	12,765	1,308,720
Germany	11,213	1,149,050
Nigeria	11,096	1,120,650
Sudan	7,984	793,300
Kenya	5,084	502,630
Tanzania	4,654	461,080
India	3,949	409,360
South Africa	4,098	406,480

By deduction the unnamed nations between them have 78,400 fines, and based on the average fine in the table of just over £101, the total fines bill outstanding is £17.8 million (The ten million pounds is the amount owing by the named nations only.)

Upside down world
The ultimate proof that too much lager and too much sun gets to the brain cells - most Australian drivers are said to support "congestion" taxes. Though the really upside down part is that the politicians don't - Sydney Morning Herald - "Bring on a congestion charge, say readers".

Gone?
We have just noticed that the website (thecarparty.org.uk) of "The Car Party" that was set up two years ago to campaign for the interests of drivers has been vapourised. We would say it has gone without a whimper though one of their spokesmen was being quoted last week on the issue of bus lanes.

Spain to change to real tolls

Euro Weekly - "Government reiterates the introduction of motorway tolls".

USA Roundup

Other stories - West Virginia - "Tolls could be used to fund new U.S. 522"   Virginia - "Senate approves transportation funding bill"   Pennsylvania - "Pike lease, I-80 tolls gain support"   Virginia - "Gasoline tax best road fix"   Land Line mag - "Effort to toll I-70 in Missouri fails, once again"   Florida - "Inflated tolls stifle mobilization"   Washington State - "Transportation secretary calls for tolling of 520"   Georgia / Florida / North Carolina / South Carolina / Virginia - "Feds OK Study For Five-State Toll On I-95"   South Carolina - "Toll parkway across Johns Island raises a rumble".

Toronto told to Go Tolls (by a Briton)

Globe and Mail - "Tolls must be considered, new trade chief says". Though not all the tolls pushing in Canada comes from Britain - Surrey Leader (BC) - "TransLink eyes car levy, tolls".

Consultants' bill to DfT

Yorkshire Post - "Getting nowhere at cost of £348m!".

New looks at congestion
West Midlands - Birmingham Mail - "Council leader in cash pledge".
Cambridge - Cambridge Network - "County Council announces commission to develop Cambridge transport strategy"   BBC - "New team to cut city congestion".

Finnish toll plan bounces back
It was only in May that Finland announced that it was not proceeding with a toll that would mainly have affected Russian truckers. Now the plan is back in retaliation for Russian levies on timber exported to Finland - YLE - "Foreign Ministry Proposes Tolls to Offset Timber Tariffs".

Macedonia reduces tolls

Balkan Insight - "Macedonia Tackles High Oil Prices".


Wednesday 25 June 2008

Tolls Destiny

Press & Journal - "Skye Bridge tolls campaigner offers to reveal location of real Stone of Destiny".

More on ERP toll increases

Asia One - " ERP helps business, says LTA". The authorities seem to be blind to the fact that the tolls have almost no effect.

Cambridge Toll - More on - County Council's step back

CEN - "£2m on fees 'not a waste of cash'".

USA Roundup

Other stories - New York - "MTA Strips Board Members of Toll, Rail Perks"   Pennsylvania - "Transportation secretary backs toll, lease option"   Arkansas - "No fuel tax increase likely, road program advocate says"   New Jersey / Pennsylvania - "Free rides must end for commissioners"   Utah - "Council votes no to tolls on road"   Pennsylvania - "Adverse effects of I-80 tolling on patient care"   Oregon / Washington State - "Task force favors new I-5 bridge, light rail"   Florida - "Bridges' one-way tolls here to stay"   Oregon / Washington State - "Washington, Oregon governors back I-5 replacement bridge with tolls, transit"   Wisconsin - "Charge toll in fast lanes, some suggest"   "Kansas tries to bridge $30 billion gap"   Land Line mag - "Pennsylvania’s war of words over funding".
Pennsylvania - "Tolling of interstates praised by U.S. transportation secretary"   Massachusetts - "Digging out from debt"   Mississippi - "Funding woes fuel dilemma"   Massachusetts - "Recognizing Pike inequity"   Virginia - "New express toll lanes get run-through"   West Virginia - "DOH: W.Va. 9 not viable as toll road"   Land Line mag - "Massachusetts Turnpike Authority considers reviving, increasing tolls".

Oz roundup

Sydney Morning Herald - "The $1b toll bribe that bought Labor votes".

Wellington toll plan

Stuff - "Leaders see Gully funding hurdles"   Scoop - "Transmission Gully makes no sense, say Greens"   NZ Herald - "$1bn Transmission Gully highway gets go ahead".

Much ado

Guardian - "Fiat criticised for CO2 ad claims". A pity that the Advertising Standards Authority can't investigate how drivers are conned into believing that CO2 emissions are more important than fuel economy (though there is a close correlation).

Greens worried

Independent - "The eco-crunch: Can Britain still afford to go green?".

Candid advice from Lib Dems on Green taxes for Tories
Yesterday the Commons debated the "cost of living". Vince Cable the Lib Dem spokesman on the economy (and ex economist for Shell) concentrated on Tory proposals. He said -
"The second proposal, which interested me particularly, was shifting the burden of taxation away from families. It talks about “our commitment to increase the proportion of taxation raised through green taxes by rebalancing taxation away from taxing ‘good’ things, like jobs and investment, towards taxing ‘bad’ things, like pollution and carbon emissions.” When I read that ... I felt that I had read that somewhere before and, in fact, I wrote it. The Conservatives have lifted our green tax switch policy of several years ago.
As a candid friend, I can tell the Conservatives in strict confidence that adopting Liberal Democrat policy in that respect would not be without problems. There are two ways in which that Conservative policy - I take it as a compliment that they have borrowed it from us - could be delivered. The first is to have a carbon tax, which in reality is a tax on household fuel and even I am not brave enough to argue for that. The second is to increase taxation on transport fuels. A bit can be raised from aviation taxes, but the green tax switch, which is the third element in the Conservative proposals, in fact involves increasing taxation on the motorist.
I do not know whether the editor of the Daily Mail has been told yet that the Conservatives are campaigning to increase taxes on the motorist."


Tuesday 24 June 2008

Tag Hazard

New Scientist - "Radio ID tags can play havoc with hospital devices".

Another Tale of Two Cities

Birmingham Post - "Voters will have their say over road pricing"   Birmingham Post - "Refusal of congestion charge will be costly, says Bore".

Lib Dems nail their flag to sinking ship

Birmingham Post - "Clegg supports the congestion charging route".

Cambridge Toll - More on - County Council takes a step back

Hunts Post - "County council bottles congestion charge plan"   Transport Briefing - "Cambridge congestion charge sent back to drawing board".

Darling tells regional reporters of his tolls dream

Lancashire Evening Post - "Pay-as-you-drive idea 'won't go away'"   Western Mail - "Road pricing ‘nowhere near being introduced’ - Darling"   Birmingham Mail - "Alistair Darling - road pricing could be reality"   Birmingham Post - "UK road charges must be considered, says Darling".

Dartford Toll - Call from Freight Transport Association for them to be scrapped

FTA press release.


Monday 23 June 2008

Cambridge Toll - County Council takes a step back

CEN - "Exclusive: Road toll doubt as council backtracks".

Congestion Tax Contagion spreading
"Experts" are telling the people of Sydney that congestion would reduce by 8%, if there was a toll of 15 cents a kilometre on the busiest roads during peak periods while residential streets would not be tolled - Sydney Morning Herald - "Congestion tax for drivers". We wonder how the "experts" plan to stop drivers using the "quiet" residential streets to avoid the tolls - machine gun posts at intersections?

Another Car tax

Accountancy Age - "HMRC hurting drivers using cars for business by £700 a year".

USA Roundup

Other stories - Virginia - "Special Session on Transportation Kicks Off Today"   Florida - "Up for lease: Alligator Alley - The proposal means cash infusion for state but an increase in tolls"   Missouri - "American interests should stay American - U.S. citizens should be outraged at what our leaders sell to foreigners"   North Carolina - "Interstate tolls could be coming to RTP".

Save the World
Sinn Féin are one of the few Irish political parties that are opposed to tolls, but they are now urging the introduction of "congestion charges". They want to save the world from the effects of climate change - Belfast Telegraph - "SF: DUP minister has to take action now on climate change".

Humber - MP wants tolls reduced

Bridlington Free Press - "Brid MP says slash bridge toll".


Sunday 22 June 2008

Flight of fancy
Patricia Hewitt must be trying to get back into the Cabinet as she tells Gordon that the solution to high oil prices is road tolls - Independent - "Hewitt scolds PM over oil crisis".

More on Toronto Tolls

Toronto Sun - "For whom the road tolls? All of us, under regional transit plan".

"Taxed out of town"
Proposed Nottingham Parking congestion levy - Auto Express.

USA Roundup

Other stories - Indiana - "Toll Road detractors air gripes with state"   California - "S.B. County transportation officials begin query into toll roads"   Virginia - "Will special session get stuck in roads rut?"   Indiana - "State Dems display united front"   Utah - "Surviving peak oil will require rethinking our transportation policies"   Virginia - "We’re not alone with road woes".


Saturday 21 June 2008

Message to the Mayor
Since the election 7 weeks ago we have heard little from the new Mayor about his pledge to consult the people and remove the western extension of the Con zone. Here is a letter from Brian Mooney of the ABD that was in the Evening Standard on the 4th, perhaps it will remind the Mayor why he should not listen to the Sirens from TfL - "The Western extension of the 'Kengestion Charge' was imposed in spite of widespread local opposition. Although abolishing it might lose some inside the area 90% discounts for venturing into the original zone, it might also save them a substantial 10% on their other journeys. It would benefit residents who have trade visits or deliveries and probably the majority travelling into the zone.

The wider Kengestion Charge has been much hyped and failed to deliver Ken's touted 'benefits' - Cllr Phil Taylor recorded net income of only around 1% or £10m to April 2007.

The Bow Group noticed a slight long-term decline in central London traffic levels, well before the Charge was introduced; and morning rush hour car traffic levels have been broadly static. Traffic tends to be self-regulating, as convenience trumps cost as the main concern in making a journey.

If the Charge were totally abolished, I wouldn't see levels rising by much. Keeping it, however, will lead to a 'Big Brother' journey tracking system.

The former Mayor dodged a public enquiry in 2000. His successor should at least give us an honest public debate on the wider zone, with the benefit of hindsight.

Mayor Johnson should regard his pledge to keep traffic moving as his priority, and should reverse the glut of anti-car measures from recent years. In particular, he should address the congestion-causing removal of road space (e.g. under-used bus lanes depriving the majority of drivers, gratuitous removal of parking spaces, the Trafalgar Square closure folly...). USA Roundup

Other stories - Georgia - "A toll for Ronald Reagan Parkway?"   New York - "Toll roads, or else"   Virginia - "How we finance new roads"   "For whom the toll bills? For thee - Illinois malfunction fines only drivers from Wisconsin"   "Pennsylvania Transportation Partners Calls on Turnpike Commission to Engage in Public Forums"   New York - "Putting a Price on Free Passes for M.T.A. Board Members"   Washington State - "How to pay"   "Florida officials delay talks on Alligator Alley leasing"   OOIDA - "Pennsylvania - Call to Action".

Traffic down

Daily Express - "CARS VANISH FROM THE ROADS AS HIGH PRICE OF FUEL BITES". The effect of high fuel prices will concern drivers, but the ones who will be worried the most by a fall in driving are the greens and the politicians who will have less of an excuse to beat up drivers and extort more money from them - not that either group are likely to lay off.

Democracy

Mike Rutherford's column in Auto Express.

Pleasant surprise

Herald Sun - "Minister rules out road congestion tax". A nice change from greedy Governments. Some of the troll arguments beggar belief such as "the city's major M2 Motorway would have to be replicated 21 times within five years just to keep congestion at today's levels".


Friday 20 June 2008

Update on USA mileage fall

USA Today reported on more evidence that Americans are driving less because of high gas prices - "Drivers cut back by 30B miles". The reported reduction of 30 billion miles should be compared with the 3,000 billion miles that Americans travel by road each year ("only" 1,700 billion miles is by car, the rest is by van, truck, motorbike and bus). You might think that any reduced use of fuel would be welcomed, but the Federal authorities are increasing the pressure for a switch from gas taxes to road tolls or as they put it "sustainable funding measures" - DOT Press Release - "Americans Drove 1.4 Billion Fewer Highway Miles in April of 2008 than in April 2007 While Fuel Prices and Transit Ridership Are Both on the Rise - .. Signals Need to Find New Revenue Sources for Highway and Transit Programs, Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters Says".

The myth goes on

Lancashire Evening Post - "No congestion charging in Lancashire". Good that the Red Rose county have no plans for tolls, but ominous that they believe "that the London congestion charge has been shown to work very well and has been shown to be a great success".

Portugal limits bridge tolls

Portugal News Online - "State pays to maintain bridge tolls". Though it is not clear which way Portugal is going with other tolls. They had planned to introduce tolls on "SCUT" untolled roads, then earlier this week the Government said that it would cut tolls for truckers.

USA Roundup

Other stories - New York - "State leaders receive an earful - Truckers protest diesel price spike"   Virginia - "A widened I-64 could come with tollbooths"   Virginia - "Road session may run into traffic"   Land Line mag - "New York Assembly OKs bill to kill some tolls"   Land Line mag - "Pennsylvania lawmakers test turnpike lease with vote"   Illinois / Wisconsin - "Ill. tollway glitch led to Wis. drivers billed"   New York - "Paterson and Cuomo Denounce M.T.A. Perks".

Euro tolls
Jose Manuel Barroso, President of the EU, has suggested that one way of dealing with higher fuel prices would be to reduce tolls paid by trucks - AFP - "EU leaders split on how to tackle soaring oil prices". A surprising statement as the European establishment is dominated by Trolls who have been promoting tolls for the last decade. Earlier this week the German Government announced that it was not reducing tolls but increasing them by 25% with the biggest toll increases for older trucks with "higher emissions". The Germans are influenced by the Greens who for unfathomable reasons want to scrap fuel taxes and increase tolls.


Thursday 19 June 2008

USA Roundup

Other stories - West Virginia - "All vehicles would be subject to tolls"   New York - "Move to Restrict Free Travel Passes Creates Rare Controversy for M.T.A. Board"   Florida - "Toll Authority Back In Court To Collect Fines"   Virginia - "A Bumpy Ride on Transportation"   Washington State - "Bridge funding options are scarce"   Pennsylvania - "House rejects turnpike lease"   Virginia - "Read their lips: No new transportation bills with taxes"   South Carolina - "For Whom the Road Tolls".

"Jammed up"

A short letter in Worthing Herald.

From another planet?

The Suburban (Montreal) - "Pay as you go". Could it be that the people who write this stuff are from another planet and have not heard of fuel taxes?

Or another dimension?

The National (UAE) - "It's easy to ignore the world on 37 cents a litre". The problem in the UAE - cheap fuel leading to high vehicle use and in particular to "fuel-guzzling, smog-belching" cars. The solution - fuel taxes? Of course not - instead it's road tolls and higher fixed costs for purchasing cars.

Cycling to Congestion

DfT press release - "Bristol appointed UK's first cycling city £100m package for cycling in 12 towns and cities ". Will all of this taxpayer's money being given to cyclists reduce congestion? The answer is probably not, as space may be taken away from the roads users who pay the taxes, and today the Executive director of the "Parliamentary Advisory Committee for Transport Safety" called for 20 mph speed limits to make roads safer for cyclists. As Bristol has been pursuing the idea of road "congestion" tolls longer than anyone else and as the cycling establishment are keen supporters of tolls, presumably Ruth Kelly thinks that her latest wheeze will further slow Bristol traffic and help her to sell tolls.

Dodgy Green taxes
More on the increases in vehicle excise duty and the effect on second hand car values - This is Money / Daily Mail - "New road tax wipes thousands off cars". "It's a tax on ownership, not on use... If the Government was serious about curbing emissions and altering people's behaviour, they would be putting VED on fuel, not on cars.".

Dodgy Yellow taxes
China has a combination of subsidised fuel and road tolls. In the interests of fuel conservation it planned to remove road tolls and instead tax fuel. Those plans appear to have evaporated, not surprising when toll collection may be corrupt and you get advice from the "European Union Chamber of Commerce in China - Energy Working Group" saying that China should increase road tolls and inflict them on more roads - Business Spectator.

Truck tolls

RoadTransport.com - "Will the LRUC really be revived?".

More on Toronto Tolls plan

Star - "Carving out transit future will take steely nerves".

Heir to the Throne's adviser advocates Tolls

Press Association - "Charles advisor in transport plea". This demonstrates the influence of the trolls in the establishment. It also shows the usual mastery of logic - "serious changes needed to be made to reduce Britain's dependence on petrol-powered transport and .... suggested taxing motorists on how many miles they drove rather than on petrol.".

Business thinks that London congestion is getting worse
The CBI have published their latest (2008) "London Business Survey". Most news reports are based on the press release which hardly mentions congestion, though the point was picked up by - The Publican.
The CBI and the KPMG are very firmly in the camp that preaches the religion of tolls, "congestion charging" and "road pricing". They did not give respondents the chance to comment on the effect of the original London charge, but there are still some interesting bits buried in the body of the report -

Views of Distribution/retail/hotels/catering sector on the western extension - "56% said it is adding to costs. A third say it has increased congestion. 22% said it is leading to a loss of customers/suppliers." (The CBI do not say how many businesses, if any, believe that congestion has reduced.)


Wednesday 18 June 2008

Bloomberg goes for Gridlock
Presumably egged on by the trolls, Mayor Bloomberg is to ban cars from a seven mile stretch of roads on three Saturdays in August. Though traffic will be allowed to cross at a few points, it will effectively mean traffic will not be able to get far on those streets that are open - NY Times - "On 3 Days in August, City Will Try No-Car Zone"   NY Daily News - "Car-free zone for biking and walking runs through city 3 days in August"   NY Times- "City to Experiment With Car-Free Streets".

More Canadian tolls pushing
It is almost as if there is an orchestrated tolls campaign in Canada, including this piece recycled today - Vancouver Sun - "From freeway to feeway: Road congestion and tolls".

Yorkshire con views

Huddersfield Daily Examiner - "CONGESTION CHARGES".

"Is it introducing a congestion charge soon because of the new road markings?"
That the authorities do their best to create congestion is not news, but it is good to see that someone has spotted one reason for it - Grimsby Telegraph - "ANGRY OVER ROAD MARKINGS CHANGE".

Another Polish toll protest
Last Thursday we reported on the tolls protest by Polish truckers. It seems that the Poles don't like our tolls either. Julita Kaczmarek from Polot, a Polish web site in Britain, has through Freedom of Information Act requests found that TfL is losing millions of pounds as it fails to identify and collect debt from Polish drivers who stray into the London "Congestion Charge" zone - "Poles owe £2 million". These Polish figures will just be the tip of the iceberg, as tolls are universally unpopular. We were recently contacted by a driver who had used a car hired in Sweden but was being hounded at his home in France. Pursuing foreign visitors after they get home with tolls and fines that are almost impossible to enforce must make Britain seem a very welcoming country. No wonder we come bottom in the Eurovision Song contest!

USA Roundup

Other stories - Florida - "Crist vetoes linking tolls to inflation"   Land Line mag - "Nevada panel endorses toll road plan"   Michigan - "Detroit-Windsor Tunnel toll free on Sunday".

"Reality requires road tolls; prepare for the inevitable"

Globe and Mail. According to the "biog" link the writer lives "downtown", so presumably he will not have the pleasure of paying tolls.

Mirror image

Advocates of "congestion charging" in London claim that the "Electronic Road Pricing" system, which was implemented 10 years ago in Singapore, long before tolls came to London in 2003, showed how wonderful a road tolls system is. The reality is that despite punitive taxes and restrictions on the number of licensed vehicles, Singapore drivers seem to be constantly on the road. Singapore is now to turn the screw even tighter (more gantries, higher charges and tolls extended to 8 PM) and in a bizarre twist they are now quoting some of the myths about the success of the London system - Today - "A costlier drive through".

Malaysia trying to reduce tolls

The Edge - "Another 2 months tore-negotiate toll agreements".


Tuesday 17 June 2008

The shape of things to come

Telegraph - "Eco-town residents may be fined for using cars".

News from the land of the tolled

Courier Mail - "Premier Bligh looks at tolls to beat traffic jams" (it seems that Premiers don't have to belt up)   Courier Mail - "Gateway and Logan motorway charges increase"   Herald Sun - "Victorian toll drivers to face crackdown".

USA Roundup

Other stories - Indiana - "Toll Road users pay more, lose time" letter   Florida - "State wants toll citations issued"   Florida - "Final Pitch For East-West Toll Road"   Washington State - "State panel meeting on 520 Bridge tolls".

More toll views

Toronto Star - "Road tolls, a bitter pill that works"   Monteal Gazette - "Bridge tolls touch some nerves".

Truck fuel options

road transport.com - "Which fuel duty option should the Treasury go for?". The Treasury is not likely to "go" for any option. It is a pity that the "fuel tank fill" option is dismissed immediately on the grounds that the EU would not allow it. It could be argued that it was a safety issue with lorries travelling on ferries or through the Chunnel. The FTA ignore another obvious option - to reduce haulier's fixed costs by slashing the punitive rates of vehicle excise duty that hauliers have to pay.

The toll trains
Though their views are not supported by many of their party members, the Lib Dem leaders are again rooting for road tolls - Argus Lite - "MP calls for road tolls to pay for railway".

Insurer abandons "Pay As You Drive" trial
Norwich Union's trial of a system that charged insurance premiums according to where and when a vehicle was used has been abandoned after a trial which has been running since 2005. The insurers say - "The big-brother element of Pay As You Drive, particularly the ability to see how fast someone drives, put a lot of potential policyholders off." - Independent - "Surveillance fears force Norwich to scrap 'pay as you drive' car policies".

York not necessarily backing the Con

The Press - "Traffic matters" letter.
PS Also in the York Press today were reports about plans for a new £40 million Council HQ in the centre of the city. One opponent of the planned new building pointed out that " The city would be less likely to need congestion charging if the council headquarters were out of town."
More on Dartford Tolls announcement
Part of the cost of resident discounts is to come from the small share of the profits that was given to local councils - Kent Online - "Dartford Crossing plan to cost KCC £1m a year". Keith Ferrin, Kent County Council’s cabinet member for highways, says “The Dartford Crossing tolls don’t reduce congestion, they add to it." The puzzle is how do the Government get away with saying the opposite?


Monday 16 June 2008

USA Roundup

Other stories - Florida - "Toll increases could become common"   California - "PB Developing Congestion Pricing Plan For Los Angeles"   North Carolina - "Toll-free I-540 the goal" letter   Virginia - "Forget tolls, leases" letter   California - "San Gabriel Valley politicians oppose MTA plan for toll lanes".
Pennsylvania - "Locals could go toll-free on I-80 - Toll collection points to be 30 miles apart"   Florida - "East-West Connector Is Dead In Its Tracks"   Pennsylvania - "Congressmen get earful about I-80 toll plan"   Virginia - "Toll lanes, congestion pricing coming to Capitol Beltway"   "North Carolina House supports funding for state’s first toll road"   Florida - "Collier road board suggests referendum on new Marco bridge".

"U.S. military defends use of highway toll tickets in Japan"
Japan pays for 900 miilion yens ($8 million) worth of toll journeys by US Forces - Stars & Stripes.

Truckers face threat of higher German tolls

Guardian / Reuters - "Germany plans rise in motorway truck tolls".

French Truckers protest over fuel costs

Guardian / Reuters - "French truckers block roads in fuel protest". The truckers also face high tolls, and a week ago the Government asked the toll road operators to introduce "special advantages for trucks".

Colombian Truckers protest over fuel costs and tolls

Reuters - "Colombian truckers call strike over gas prices".

More Tolling along

Toronto Sun - "Road tolls tax patience in city council"   Globe & Mail - "Taken for a ride by tolls?".


Sunday 15 June 2008

Liverpool Toll - demo

BBC - "Demonstration over toll charges".

High School students get demonstration of Nick Clegg's consistency

Hereford Times - "Question time for leader". Quote 1 - "We should be paying progressively more for fuels". Quote 2 - ".. in favour of reducing fuel tax by 10 per cent in exchange for the introduction of a road pricing scheme.".

More Stats

Also published on Thursday 5th - DfT press release - "Congestion on inter-urban roads - provisional figures to April 2008" (includes links to various dat a files). The curious thing about official congestion stats is that on the "Strategic Road Network" it almost seems as if it does not exist - The average vehicle delay on the slowest 10% of journeys is under 4 minutes per 10 miles. At 60 miles per hour, 10 miles would take 10 minutes. If it takes 4 minutes longer then the vehicle is still averaging 43 mph on these slowest journeys. This is not satisfactory, but neither is it "gridlock". (See 2nd June for our comments on the May figures.)


Saturday 14 June 2008

"Bike owners taken for ride"

Sydney Morning Herald. Though they are complaining that they pay too much, the bikers rep says that "motorcyclists are happy to pay a toll". Not exactly Hells' Angels talk.

Tolling along

Mississigua News - "Transportation authority eyes more toll roads"   Globe & Mail - "Agency floats idea of tolls on all major expressways".

Humber Toll - more on plan for increase

Grimsby Telegraph - "ANGER OVER PLAN TO INCREASE BRIDGE TOLL".

Liverpool Toll protest

BBC - "Toll protesters step up campaign".

More on "Mileage down?"
On Thursday we mentioned "rumours" that the increase in fuel prices, had led to a dramatic fall in fuel sales in Britain. In fact these are more then rumours, as it is based on what the International Energy Agency told a Daily Telegraph reporter and was in Wednesday's paper - "Petrol sales fall 20pc as drivers feel the pinch".
The IEA only reveal their detailed figures to subscribers, and the Government and the UK Petroleum Industries Association don't appear to have released anything. But there are graphs (all pdf files) on the free part of the IEA site that show - various statistics (up to April 08). Including UK Motor Gasoline Demand - Time Series - April 06 to April 08. The later graph seems to show a significant decline, but this is largely due to the trend of a switch from Petrol to Diesel. Taking the two fuels together, demand seems to have been fairly level - April 2005 - 835,000 barrels a day (Petrol 445, Diesel 390), April 2006 - 855 kbd (P 435, D420), April 2007 - 855 kbd (P425, D430), April 2008 845 kbd (P405, D440). The Telegraph story will be based on the May figures, but even so a fall of 20 per cent in fuel sales (indicating a large fall in miles travelled) seems unlikely - yet.


Friday 13 June 2008

USA Roundup

Other stories - Texas - "J.P. Morgan to lend up to $2.5B for toll roads"   New Jersey / Pennsylvania - "Does DRPA really need to hike tolls?".

New toll bridge planned

BC Local - "Green light for Port Mann twinning".

"Motorists pay an absolute fortune for the privilege of getting on our roads ... to add new ones to it will just in this current climate send them to the wall"

ABC - "Congestion tax 'could send drivers to the wall'".

York spinning the Con

The Press - "Act now to get York out of a jam" (see comments).

Peter Roberts to launch a new organisation for drivers
- Birmingham Post - "Anti-congestion charge campaigner Peter Roberts takes Drivers' Alliance fight to the national stage". As the story says, the AA and RAC are not members organisations. But the story does not say there is already a real members organisation - the Association of British Drivers. We hope that the "Drivers' Alliance" and the ABD can somehow get together.
The story also has the Shadow Transport Secretary being asked about Tory policy. What she says offers little hope for motorists, and there is a threat of lorry tolls. Many hauliers support this as they believe that despite the vast cost of running such a scheme, it would in effect only be foreign hauliers that paid, as British hauliers would get a fuel tax rebate. They might as well believe in Santa Claus, and instead of supporting a new tax would be better off campaigning for controls on the amount of cheap fuel allowed in the tanks of foreign lorries that come to Britain, campaigning for reductions in the massive VED on lorries, and campaigning for harmonisation of fuel taxes in the EU.
PS Shropshire Star - "Group to air views of drivers"   Drivers' Alliance.

More on confirmation of Dartford Toll discount for "residents"

Kent Online - "Dartford toll discounts confirmed". This is part of our press release yesterday - "All drivers are paying a massive amount to the Government - one billion pounds week. There is no justification for tolls on top of that. The Dartford Crossing is owned by the Government and in effect if there are reductions in tolls at Dartford then that is coming from the money that is being contributed by drivers all over Britain. It is unjust if the Government does not give similar discounts to users of all other crossings in Britain. Better still it should scrap the tolls altogether. They are a barrier to the free movement of vehicles, they cause delays, diversions and congestion and they increase vehicle emissions and the risk of accidents.Tolls are an anachronism and should be consigned to the waste bin."

More calls for removal of tolls on Friendship bridge

Sofia Echo - "Crossing the Danube".

Scotland the first to wake up to Lib Dem plans
The Scots have realised the effect on them of the Lib Dem road toll plans (see "Lib Dem suicide note" on 6th and "Lib Dem solution to high fuel prices" on 3rd) - Press & Journal - "Commuters to be hit in the pocket by Lib Dem tax plans". When will drivers in England and Wales wake up to this?

"NSW Greens back congestion tax"

The Age. No doubt they would not be averse to the hanging, drawing and quartering of drivers!

Toll investment firm stock down

The Star - "Babcock shares hit all-time low".

"Government 'should rethink road pricing'"
The House of Commons Transport Committee say that -"local road pricing schemes cannot be effective pilots for a national scheme" - Telegraph. The MPs' report - "DfT Annual report 2007" (pdf), on the BBC - "Road pricing 'should be assessed'". It is good to see that the BBC has given a link to one organisation that is not a tolls advocate - American Airlines.
The MPs' comments on "Road pricing and the Transport Innovation Fund" are on pages 15 and 16. Despite the impression that the headline might give, most of the MPs want road tolls and don't disagree with bribing local authorities - they just don't think that enough councils will take the bait and that it will not get the MPs where most of them want to be - a nationally tolled road system.
"Lorry road user charging" is on pages 16 and 17. The MPs attack the Government for not tolling lorries. They say that this is to help the haulage industry! Strange that they want to help them by introducing a new tax rather than reducing the massive amounts that are paid in fuel tax and vehicle excise duty.
When she was examined by MPs, Ruth Kelly repeated the assertion that the Government have not decided whether to introduce national road tolls or not, and that it would in any case only do so after there had been investment in public transport.

More on "ID cards 'could threaten privacy"

The Commons Home Affairs committee report is now on their website (pdf). The main report does not mention data being collected for "congestion charging" and road pricing. The issue was raised in some of the evidence, and the National Policing Improvement Agency speculated on how police might cope as the ANPR systems would "throw up an awful lot of matches ..... and we have to streamline the paperwork for summary cases, the back office support, the case and custody system, so that we are not dragging police officers off the street as we get more hits".


Thursday 12 June 2008

Mileage down?

There are rumours that the increase in fuel prices, has led to a dramatic fall in fuel sales in Britain, but so far we have seen no official figures to confirm this. If motorists are driving less then it will worry the Government as it will result in another hole in their budget.

USA Roundup

Other stories - New Jersey / Pennsylvania - "Local bridge tolls hike likely by fall"   West Virginia - "Mattox asked to discuss toll road"   Landline mag - "Pennsylvania lawmakers want I-80 toll law repealed".

More oppositon to Montreal tolls proposal

The Gazette - "Tolls to access island a bad idea: mayors".

Portugese truckers strike over
In Portugal the strike over fuel prices has ended. The Government are doing nothing about the fuel prices but they are cutting road tolls and giving some tax concessions - Portugal Resident - "Fuel protest ends after unions and government agree deal".

Humber Toll - plan for increase

Grimsby Telegraph - "BRIDGE TOLL SET TO RISE".

More on Polish toll protest

Automotive World - "Truck drivers in claimed 100,000-vehicle national blockade".

Cambridge Toll - Ruth Kelly says that she will make an announcement soon

CEN - "Kelly promises A14 upgrade announcement". As the County Council that plans to toll the city is Tory controlled, this will be a real coup for Labour as it will mean that the road tolls rope is firmly round the neck of all three parties.

Dartford Toll discount for "residents" confirmed

BBC - "Dartford toll discounts announced"   DfT press release. What about other users of the Dartford Crossing and all the users of ALL the other river crossings?

Humber Toll study

BBC - "Councils fund bridge tolls study". Link to the campaign against the tolls.

Trolls try to sell tolls to Indonesia

Jakarta Post - "Norway-based company offers city electronic road pricing system".

More on business opposition to SA toll

Cape Business News - "Winelands Toll Project a Bad Idea". Businesses say that - "There is no doubt that major road improvements are required .. but the most equitable way to fund them would be through the fuel levy which would spread the burden evenly throughout the Cape Town economic region. It would also ensure that payment was in proportion to road usage to meet the ‘user pays’ principle in the broader sense... tolls would have an adverse impact on vital industry and would affect rural communities and jobs in areas where they were desperately needed .. Tolls are the most expensive way to finance roads."

More on Montreal tolls proposal

The Suburban editorial - "Tolls are a bad idea"   The Suburban - "Tolls would not curb car usage: CAA-Quebec".


Wednesday 11 June 2008

Conferences

Tomorrow there is a - "Road Network Management" conference. The overview says "Making changes to the way we use our roads is a necessary but controversial process". Among those supporting the event are the RAC Foundation, so we assume that "road pricing" is one of the "necessary" processes.

"America can learn from UK policy"
Particularly the London Congestion Charge!!!   Press Association. The report also mentions Leeds and Bristol, which "avoid the gridlock seen in US cities" - can this be the same Bristol where for years the Council have been wanting to introduce a congestion charge?
PS Report in the next day's Guardian - "Curb cars and sprawl under next US leader, experts urge".

More on Liverpool river crossing "congestion" Toll
- Runcorn & Widnes World - "'I promise bridge tolls discount'"   Liverpool Echo - "Bridge plans go on show".

View on Con from around Britain

Birmingham Post - "Birmingham business 'won't suffer from loss of transport funds'"   The Herald (Plymouth) - "West 'losing out' on congestion funding"   York Press - "What are the solutions to traffic congestion?".

Polish toll protest

Polskie Radio - "Polish truck drivers protest against proposed highway toll hike"   PR Inside - "Polish truckers wage brief strike to protest planned rise in highway tolls".

USA Roundup

Other stories - Arkansas - "Traveling Roads Could Cost You"   Virginia - "House speaker: State should lease toll rights"   Florida - "Survey: One-way toll system favored; One-year trial began in November"   Florida - "Analysis: Did too little information coming too late doom the toll road?"   California - "San Gabriel Valley members of Congress move to slow congestion pricing freeway plan"   New York - "DOT exploring fixes to Staten Island highways".
Pennsylvania - "Officials want I-80 toll law rescinded"   Virginia - "Major toll plan for roads to be proposed"   "New York Assembly Approves Toll Elimination Bill"   California - "Public hearing on Golden Gate toll hike"   Florida - "Toll Roads"   Virginia - "Freeway extension popular, but toll is less so, VDOT finds".


Tuesday 10 June 2008

Italy cuts tolls for truckers

Thomson Financial - "Italy pledges 107 mln euros for truckers mainly via cut in motorway tolls".

Scotland will not repeat toll attempt

Edinburgh Evening News - "No new vote on congestion charge in city"   The Herald - "Traffic planners rule out congestion charges".

Liverpool "congestion" Toll
Despite their reputation it seems that the people in the Liverpool area are as docile as lambs. For the first time in Britain a free bridge is to have a toll put on it, and no one complains - Liverpool Echo - "Mersey Gateway bridge tolls revealed"   Liverpool Daily Post - "Tariff plans for Mersey bridges marks 'momentous day'"   Runcorn & Widnes Weekly News - "Bridge tolls to be used for congestion busting".

New tracking system

infrasite - "Siemens and NXP develop GPS/GSM-based toll system for private vehicles".

A bit more toll savings

Forbes - "Japan eyes extra measures against rising oil prices".

No tolls - No bribe

Journal (Newcastle) - "No congestion fee, no transport cash".

Channel Four programme on Mayor did not break code

Broadcast - "C4 Livingstone doc cleared".

Toll offset
Retailers are still saying that the London Con charge is hurting business, so Westminster City Council is substantially reducing charges on some of its car parks with the target of geting 30% more cars.

Cambridge Toll - alternatives

News from Cambridge - "PACCA announces workshop to find alternatives to congestion charge".

Another call for an end to tolls in Malaysia

Bernama - "Selangor MCA Calls For Abolition Of Road Tax And Tolls".

Two views on Montreal tolls proposal

The Gazette - "On the right road with tolls"   The Gazette - "Try raising gas tax instead of tolls".
PS The Gazette - "Suburbanites do pay".

More on Manchester Toll D Day

To see more on yesterday's announcement, click at top of this page on the link to Manchester News.


Monday 9 June 2008

Manchester Toll D Day

Association of British Drivers - "Triple Tax Whammy Could Trigger Summer of Discontent".
For more coverage click at top of this page on the link to Manchester News.

Bristol Council says me too

Bristol Evening Post - "BRISTOL CONGESTION CHARGE COULD FOLLOW MANCHESTER".

Bikers complain about Dunham toll

BBC - "Motorcyclists demand toll changes". The tolls are an anachronism that almost everywhere else in Britain were removed over 100 years ago. The Government and the authorities should take over the bridge and remove the tolls. All traffic, not only bikers, will then be able to travel without this hindrance.

Cambridge car share
Cambridgeshire County Council proposes to toll drivers moving around Cambridge, but in the meantime has come up with a non-tax scheme - CEN - "Give colleague and environment a lift".


Sunday 8 June 2008

Road taxes
We have revised our estimate of taxes paid by drivers. The more direct taxes are now around £50 billion a year, with another £7 billion or so of less direct taxes. We have also updated the figure for "roads" spending, which is now around £9 billion a year. If you exclude measures that are designed to make things better for cyclists, buses, pedestrians and horses and which may slow down, stop or ban motor vehicles, then the spending is probably only around half that.

"ID cards 'could threaten privacy"

BBC. The committee report should appear here today or tomorrow.

USA Roundup

Texas - "Highland Park's on wrong path with proposed Mockingbird tolls"   Virginia - "Tolls will further divide region" letter   Virginia - "Who profits on lease?" letter.


Saturday 7 June 2008

More on Manchester Toll D Day

BBC - "Congestion charging decision due"   Times - "Manchester split over plan for commuter-only congestion charge"   Telegraph - "Road pricing: first scheme outside of London to be announced for Manchester".
For a bit more detail click at top of this page on the link to Manchester News.

Air duty

Evening Standard - "US threatens legal action over British Government's high airline taxes".

Free Rides
The European operator of an American toll road offers a free ride to the politicians - Journal Gazette - "Lawmakers get free use of Toll Road; most refuse"   Indianapolis Star - "Legislators offered free ride".
Around the world, how many other privately operated toll roads offer free rides to politicians and other people that they wish to influence?

USA Roundup

Florida - "One-way tolls best route"   Connecticut - "Reactions to toll editorial shows public cynicism toward elected leaders"   California - "Congresswoman to Congestion-pricing : Slow down!"   Virginia - "Court revives toll road transfer lawsuit".

More on Montreal tolls proposal

The Gazette - "A frosty response to toll plan"   The Gazette - "Tolls require a lot more study before we go down that road - A simple increase in the gas tax might be a better way to go".


Friday 6 June 2008

Manchester Toll D Day
It is not official yet, but it seems that the Government are to announce on Monday that a trial of national road tolls is to go ahead in Manchester - Crain's - "TIF award announcement expected on Monday". It seems that the Government has a death wish, but are the Tories up to giving them the coup de grâce?

USA Roundup

Other stories - Florida - "Protesting proposal to privatize Alligator Alley"   Maine - "Toll plan premeditated?"   Pennsylvania - "Turnpike lease bill gets rare bipartisan backing"   New York - "MTA hike fare-y may visit us again"   New York - "Latimer, Assembly again seek to nix I-95 toll"   North Carolina - "NW Wake toll road gets House nod"   Oregon / Washington State - "Council backs Columbia River bridge with light rail, tolls"   West Virginia - "Turnpike budget anticipates toll decline"   Pennsylvania - "Conga line event planned in opposition of I-80 tolling"   New York - "Assembly Votes to End I-95 Toll on Larchmont Border"   "Tolling, privatization bills in Alabama fail to advance".

"Road tolls for York?"
York's officers want the council to bring in road tolls - The Press. Presumably the idea is that it will make it easier for the officers to drive into work! York already charges very substantial amounts for ordinary people to park in the city centre. And if the suggestion is that some drivers are crazy enough to drive through the city centre to get to the other side, then the council should make sure that they have good peripheral roads and check the signposting around the city and to the park and ride locations.
PS Northern Echo - "York congestion charging fears".

Humber tolls - action by MPs
Some local MPs have put forward an amendment to the Local Transport Bill with the aim of reducing the tolls on the Humber bridge - Scunthorpe Telegraph - "BID TO CUT BRIDGE TOLLS". Oddly enough if the bill goes through as it stands at the moment it might make no difference even if the tolls were reduced to nil. The reason for this is that English authorities are being given unfettered powers to introduce whatever tolls they like on any road, including the bridge.

More on Friendship bridge

Focus - "Danube bridge tolls should be lifted".

Montreal tolls proposal

The Gazette - "Roads could be rocky, truckers say"   The Gazette - "New system offers smoother ride than old plan"
The Gazette - "Wanted: A better solution than bridge tolls"   The Gazette - "City hall aiming to impose road tolls"   CBC - "Montreal proposes 'socially responsible' bridge tolls"   Official press release.

Lib Dem suicide note
Boris Johnson has resigned his Commons seat which means that there will be a by-election in Henley. The seat is a Labour no hoper so the battle will be between Tories and Lib Dems. It will be interesting to see if the Lib Dems push their plans for road tolls and if the Tories attack them (or keep quiet as they may have similar plans).
The Lib Dem proposal was launched on Tuesday but there have been no details on their website till today - "Fast Track Britain". The "tolls" dirty word does not appear in the document, instead we have at the start of their Executive summary that they would "build .. a national transport system fit for the 21st century", by- "- Setting up a Future Transport Fund to provide an investment stream for improvements to the public transport system. The income for this Fund would be generated from the proceeds from national lorry road user charging and the domestic flights surcharge to Aviation Duty (excluding lifeline flights).
- Introducing motorway and trunk road pricing within ten years but in the meantime reduce carbon emissions by introducing more steeply graduated VED and national lorry road user charging and investing in public transport; in the second phase road pricing on motorways and trunk roads will be cost neutral for the motorists as we reduce fuel duty and abolish VED.
- More steeply graduating the Government’s ‘showroom’ tax, to financially reward those purchase cars with low emission engines. Bands G and F will carry a higher tax burden at the point of purchase, whilst those who purchase cars in bands A or B will receive a substantial subsidy." The only appropriate tax if the aim is to reduce carbon emissions is a fuel tax - which we already have. The idea that to meet this aim you replace fuel tax with tolls, a "showroom" tax and different VED bands is mad. To suggest that toll schemes can be "cost neutral" for drivers when they are so expensive to run shows either complete ignorance or dishonesty.

On "lorry road user charging" (2.4.10) they say that this will be "on a pay per mile basis, varying according to emissions". In other words they will create a complex and expensive system which will attempt to crudely match what fuel duty already does.
The Government abandoned its own lorry charging scheme because the cost of setting it up and running it was so great. So how much will the Lib Dem tax bill for lorries have to rise if it is not only to cover these extra costs but also provide a surplus to go into the "Future Transport Fund"?

The main part of the document (2.4.11. to 2.4.17) gives more details of the "Motorway and Trunk Road Pricing" proposal- "2.4.11 Liberal Democrats propose a motorway and trunk road pricing scheme covering all motorways and major trunk roads in Britain.
2.4.12 During our first parliament we would undertake preparatory work:
- Detailed consultation on the design of the scheme, including levels of charging and data privacy issues.
- Invest significantly in public transport through our Future Transport Fund.
2.4.13 The key aspects of our proposal are:
- Road pricing should be seen as part of a package of measures – it is not a solution on its own.
- To tax differently, not more. Our scheme will be revenue neutral for the average motorist, with the revenue from road pricing used to remove VED entirely and reduce fuel duty.
- Significant investment would be injected into public transport prior to introducing any charging, providing a viable alternative to the private motor vehicle, where possible.
- Pricing would be linked to car emissions, benefiting lower emission vehicles.
- A ‘Privacy Guarantee’ would be provided to motorists, by separating any personal details held from journey details.4 This would include the option of using an anonymous pre-pay system and would establish robust legal guidelines around the use of data collected (i.e. data would not be passed on to other organisations).
- Exemptions and discounts would be introduced for emergency vehicles, NHS vehicles, public transport vehicles, and vehicles used by disabled drivers who rely on their car for transport (following the disability exemptions for VED).
- We would make a firm commitment to provide political leadership in tackling emissions from the transport sector.
2.4.15 A number of locations have already implemented forms of road pricing including London, Stockholm and Singapore, and the Netherlands are currently considering a national scheme.
2.4.16 The benefits we would expect to see include:
- Fairer charges for using roads according to the polluting effect of each vehicle.
- Financial benefits for drivers who have no public transport alternatives and are dependent on the car (particularly in rural areas).
- An increase in the certainty of journey times (vital for the freight and services sectors) due to an incidental reduction in congestion levels.
- A commensurate improvement in viable public transport alternatives to the car.
2.4.17 We envisage that our motorway and trunk road user charging scheme would operate using the ‘tag and beacon’ scheme, covering motorways and trunk roads. To avoid a plague of ‘rat running’, the technology chosen must allow for penalties to be enforced on drivers who ‘rat run’ in order to avoid payment." Most of this is the familiar illogical nonesense, but they have made the mistake of meeting one obvious objection to tolls on main roads - drivers will use other roads - by coming up with an even more hare brained idea - "penalties" for "rat running". How can there be penalties for using other roads unless the system also applies to those roads? And how will the toll system know if the vehicles on those other roads are only there because they were attempting to avoid the tolls?
They say that the toll system will be "tag and beacon". How are they going to ensure drivers instal a tag and keep it in working order? However they try and do this, they will need to have some sort of a backup system, which the Lib Dems (or whoever wrote this for them) have ignored as this further increases the cost of setting up and running the system.

More Protests
Bolivia and Chile are amongst the many countries where truck drivers are calling for lower fuel prices and removal of tolls - Top News - "Truck drivers protest over fuel prices in Chile, Bolivia". In France the Government has also called for toll road operators to introduce "special advantages for trucks" - The Star - "Measures to aid truckers". The introduction of subsidies on fuel could be counter productive, but any opportunity should be taken to switch the emphasis away from tolls, charges and taxes that do not relate to fuel use.

More on Marginal costing
With Malaysia "reducing" the subsidy on fuel prices, some people are suggesting that the tolls should be scrapped - Malaysiakini- "Time to 'reduce our carbon footprint'"   "'BN gov't has lost the plot'". (Note as Malaysia controls the retail price of petrol, it is not clear that the amount of subsidy has gone down even though people are paying a lot more.)


Thursday 5 June 2008

USA Roundup

Other stories - Land Line mag - "Louisiana Legislature approves bill to rein in bridge deals"   North Carolina - "House votes for RTP toll road"   New Jersey - "DOT will take back ex-employees' E-ZPasses" nbsp; Virginia - "Will special session on roads end up at dead end?"   Pennsylvania - "Two introduce Rendell's turnpike-lease plan in House"   Maine - "The Man with the Plan - The Time Is Right For a Cross-state Super Toll Road"   Texas - "Txdot credibility in political pothole".

More toll plans

Scoop - "Toll proposed on Tamaki Estuary crossing".

Marginal costing
In Malaysia they make it very expensive to buy a car and then subsidise fuel prices. Now that fuel prices are rocketing, they are cutting the subsidy - Malaysiakini- "Let me pay market price for cars too"   "The 'tsunami' fuel hike".

Indian view of the Big Con

Economic Times - "C-Charge won't work here".

Unused toll road in Bangladesh

Daily Star - "Tk 110cr Chittagong road serves little to ease traffic in city".


Wednesday 4 June 2008

Later USA news

Florida - "Eight contractors bid to manage Alligator Alley"   "The only thing more painful than gas prices may be the toll-road hell Texas is about to enter"   Pennsylvania - "Reform Group Suggests Abolishing Turnpike Commission"   New Jersey - "Garden State Parkway tokens expire at end of year".

Road taxes
David Cameron attacks the Prime Minister over the planned vehicle excise duty increases - BBC - "Brown attacked over road tax plan". The Government merits the attack but a pity that no one pointed out the illogic of charging cars higher because of the CO2 they might produce rather than charging on the basis of the fuel that they actually use.

Playing politics with Holes in the road
An AA survey is reported as showing that two out of three of their "members" think that roads are in a worse state than 10 years ago - Daily Express - "POTHOLED ROADS ARE A NATIONAL DISGRACE"   BBC - "Roads 'worse than 10 years ago'". Though someone seems to have put a bit of political spin on the original statement by the AA which mainly said that drivers thought that spending more money on roads was the best way of improving safety - AA - "AA members say fix the roads not the drivers".

New road may increase congestion
A new toll road in the Melbourne area is expected to lead to more traffic on other roads including drivers using them as "rat-runs to avoid toll" - Manningham Leader - "How will EastLink affect you?".

USA Roundup

New Hampshire - "Legislators listen on toll issue"   "Gov. Kaine pushes transportation plan at Virginia Beach town hall meeting"   Florida - "Drivers Avoid Toll Roads To Save Money".


Tuesday 3 June 2008

More on Lib Dem solution to high fuel prices
The party's latest idea is now on their website - "Liberal Democrats launch radical new transport policies" and in the Guardian "Lib Dems unveil 'radical alternative vision' for transport". Their proposals include - "Cutting fuel duty and abolishing VED over the next 10 years and introducing a cost-neutral road user pricing scheme on motorways and trunk roads", and they say - "Motorway and trunk road pricing will cost the average motorist no more but the costs will be honest and upfront and rural motorists who have to rely on their cars will save money." This statement shows either abysmal ignorance or blatant dishonesty, as the cost of implementing and administering a toll scheme would mean that the average driver would have to pay more as it is most unlikely that the Government would receive less. A move to toll the main roads would also encourage drivers to use less suitable roads causing more congestion and accidents. It is also odd that they want to move away from a tax on fuel to a toll system that could only very crudely reflect the fuel used - such a move makes no sense and makes you wonder who comes up with these ideas.
PS Later reports - BBC - "Clegg unveils road charging plan"   Birmingham Post - "Lib Dems propose pay-per-mile system for motorists".

More on - It's on the way
One of the Government backed bodies that is providing some of the funding for development of road pricing systems is the "Technology Stategy Board". This is one of their recent announcements - "Speeding towards solutions to traffic congestion".

Go back
Hammersmith & Fulham Council want the westward extension of the charge zone removed - Evening Standard - "Boris Johnson told: give people a say now on western zone of C-charge".
PS A conference in Jerusalem is told about effect of London congestion charging on air pollution, that "the data shows that it didn't really work". This is of course not news but it is surprising that someone has said it at an environment and health conference - Jerusalem Post - "Environmental practices need 'wholesale change,' UK prof. says".

Dartford Toll
Kent News - "Drivers urged to sign anti Dartford toll petition". The latest petition. The DfT say that "Our modelling shows that at peak times the bridge and tunnels can be overwhelmed so the fee is intended more as a congestion charge". This is absolute nonsense. Apart from anything else the approach to the crossing is three lanes each way, while the crossing is 4 lanes each way. Everyone knows that the congestion is caused by the tolls and it is sad that the Government will not admit the truth.

Lib Dem solution to high fuel prices
The answer is road tolls - The Argus - "Jobs fear over increased petrol prices".

Food crisis? - Blame it on the drivers

BBC - "UN sets out food crisis measures". Though the fuel price problem is hurting drivers around the world, many people are facing the more serious problem of an inadequate food supply. A UN conference is looking at the problem and the main issues on the agenda are climate change and bio fuels - FAO - "High-Level Conference on World Food Security: the Challenges of Climate Change and Bioenergy". There seems to be no mention of population growth. It seems that the establishment did not always turn a blind eye to the effects of population growth. In 1991 the Food and Agriculture Organisation published this paper - "Population growth and the food crisis". The world population was then 5.3 billion, it is now 6.8 billion.

USA Roundup

Other stories - West Virginia - "Residents weigh in on U.S. 35 toll possibility"   Florida - "Wekiva Parkway project could be coupled with I-4"   Florida - "Residents react to possible bridge tolls"   Florida - "Commissioners agree to make Cape Coral bridge tolls permanent"   Florida - "Marco backs next phase of bridge-toll study".

It's on the way

The Engineer - "Wireless Technology Consultants"   Thomas net- "All-In-One Traffic Camera optimizes vehicle imaging".

Timeo Danaos et dona ferentis

Express & Star (Saturday) - "Talks on free M6 Toll travel". The line from the Aeneid says "I fear the Greeks, even bringing gifts". The politicians do not care about congestion, if they did then we would have the roads we need without tolls, and the existing M6 Toll road would be bought out. This latest suggestion may just be another way of trying to promote this empty road

Strange customs

The Star - "Right move, wrong target". The way in which Singapore forces vehicles to top up with its more expensive fuel is interesting, but what is bizarre is the practice in some countries of combining fuel subsidies with road tolls. Is this a sign that those in power drive big cars?

Irish trolls
Ireland is considering replacing vehicle excise duty with road tolls - RTE - "New system of motor taxation is urged". The declared aim of the policy is to "encourage consumers to purchase more fuel-efficient, clean vehicles and to drive less". Drivers know that is what high fuel prices and high fuel taxes does, those who advocate tolls have other aims.


Monday 2 June 2008

Shhh.. 1
On the 8th May the DfT issued various surveys and statistics without any press releases, including - "Public attitudes to congestion and road pricing", the page has links to the report and questionaire (pdf files) and tables (Excel). One credit point for the DfT is that they have been open enough to include the script that was used for this survey. The script makes it easier to tell how misleading the published results are.

The DfT and the other toll advocates work from a manual that tells them how best to get a positive response. For a start those surveyed were told - "A number of transport experts have indicated that building new roads and improving public transport cannot on their own deal with the congestion problem. It has been suggested that we need to also look at alternative methods of charging for road use that might encourage people to use their cars differently or change their travel behaviour. " Other tricks are the number and order of the questions, the choices given (or not) and most important of all - not telling people that road pricing will cost about £10 billion a year to administer.

The last question was a variation on this deception - "The revenue from road pricing could be spent on a range of public services, as is the case with current revenue raised from fuel duty and road tax; or it could be spent only on roads and transport. Which of the following do you think should apply? ". The choices and responses were restricted and did not for instance include all the money raised being spent on roads- (1) Money raised from road pricing should be spent on a range of public services - 20%.
(2) Money raised from road pricing should be spent only on roads and transport - 48%.
(3) I don't agree with road pricing under any circumstance - 14%
(4) I would need to know more about this type of system before I could say - 18%. Though in many cases the answers are not what the Government wanted, this survey is alarming as it seems that the Government is planning to go ahead with road pricing and that it believes that it can deceive the people.

Shhh.. 2
Also on the 8th May the DfT issued these other two surveys and statistics without any press releases -

"Congestion on inter-urban roads", the page has links to various reports (pdf files) and tables (Excel).
The table covers just under 7,400 miles of main roads (outside urban areas) for the period August 2004 to July 2005. The figures show the extent to which actual measured speeds between points on the network are below "reference speeds" i.e. "the speed that could theoretically be achieved when traffic is free flowing. This is usually less than the speed limit in order to allow for slowing down at junctions, etc. and to reflect the fact that even in the best conditions, the speed limit will not on average be attained. ". From the figures we have calculated that the average delay is just under 7 seconds per mile over all time periods, and even during the AM peak is only 9 seconds. Remarkably low figures!!!

Climate change - official
Last week the DfT issued the result of the latest survey on - "Public Attitudes towards climate change and the impact of transport", it has links to the report and questionnaire (pdf files) and tables (Excel).
Those interviewed were asked 41 questions. Some of the results are shown below. It seems that the Government has managed to make almost all the population believe in man made global warming, and believe that cars are one of the main causes, though a surprisingly high number believe that flying is more significant. Despite these beliefs, only 16% support "charging motorists to enter towns and cities" and many of those 16% will not be drivers.

They were than told that under "the Kyoto Protocol" "emissions from cars and domestic plane journeys" will have to be cut and were asked which of 11 policies they would supprt (they could give more than one and on average gave between three and four). The choices were- 59% - Spending more on improving bus services
55% - Spending more on improving rail services
55% - More safe routes for children to walk to school
41% - Measures to encourage car sharing
39% - Higher taxes on less environmentally friendly cars
38% - Better information on local public transport services
36% - More cycle tracks
19% - Increasing the cost of flying
16% - Charging motorists to enter more towns and cities
9% - Increasing tax on petrol
5% - Increasing car parking charges
USA Roundup

Other stories - Virginia - "Compromise in Doubt For Va. Roads Funding"   Florida - "Never notified of toll violation".


Sunday 1 June 2008

USA Roundup