Current Events > California looking to replace gas tax with charging for how many miles driven

(+) Yeah! (+)

https://www.kcra.com/article/road-charge-could-replace-california-gas-tax/34726215

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they are gonna do that nationwide eventually as electric takes over

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Logistical and privacy nightmare, unless, of course, someone remembers that cars already have mileage logging built in.

I like this more than a gas tax for the reasons stated in the article but it does still punish lower income people that have to live far away from work in cheaper areas and commute/can't work from home. It would incentivize people to not drive as much however which would help with traffic and pollution a little bit.

As far as collecting you could have it tacked onto registration renewal where you just have to log in your miles every year. But it would be tougher to provide proof.

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"Ideally, its based on miles driven and not size of the vehicle or make of the vehicle, that is the most equitable feature, is regardless of your experience on the transportation system, we want to make sure we come up with a plan that makes it fair for everybody," said Caltrans spokesman Chris Clark.

This makes no sense. The vast majority of wear and tear on roads is caused by large, heavy vehicles such as semis thus they should be on the hook for more taxes. One estimate places the road damage caused by a fully loaded 5-axle rig (about 40 tons) is equal to as many as 5,000-10,000 passenger cars.
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Paragon21XX posted...

The vast majority of wear and tear on roads is caused by large, heavy vehicles such as semis thus they should be on the hook for more taxes.

There's already per-axle and GVWR fees rolled into license and renewals.