The Campaign for Better Transport recently launched a new report, ‘Pay-as-you-drive: the British public’s views on vehicle taxation reform.’
The BVRLA spoke to the Transport Select Committee just under a year ago, telling MPs that the Government needs to start planning for a national road pricing scheme now to ensure that the transition from today’s emissions-based motoring tax regime is as smooth as possible.
Many experts and policymakers agree but it has been a while since the public’s views on this have been tested. The Campaign for Better Transport based the report on focus group research and polling of over 3,000 people.
The report found that people understand the need for electric vehicles (EVs) to start paying tax like other vehicles (though at a lower rate), as the money lost in fuel duty needs to come from somewhere. The ability to budget better as vehicle tax becomes more transparent also appealed to participants.
The report suggests a national pay-as-you-drive scheme could progress from a pilot flat per-mile charge for EVs to replacing fuel duty and Vehicle Excise Duty with a smart charge variable by vehicle emissions and where and when the journey takes place. To ensure fairness, the scheme can offer a tax-free mileage allowance, which could be higher for people living in rural areas with fewer alternatives to driving, and the ability to opt out and pay a simple per-mile rate instead for those concerned about vehicle tracking.
The Campaign for Better Transport is calling on the Government to establish a cross-party commission before the next general election to help broker agreement on the principle of the need to reform vehicle taxation. The commission’s findings should then be consulted on to decide the preferred way forward so that a pay-as-you-drive scheme is ready for implementation around the middle of the decade.
Read a summary of the main findings or the full report to find out more.
