[MrPC]

Back on topic for a moment, raising fuel taxes can encourage people to move closer to where they work, and buy houses in places where you can walk or cycle to work. It's a long term (20+yr) scenario though, but it could be helped along in a shorter timeframe by targeting the revenue to incentives and services.

Fixing public transport so that it's *gasp* useful might be a good start.

Paying people a bonus if they move their household to somewhere on the same bus or rail route as their job, or within walking distance (<4km for 50% bonus, <2km for 100%). You'd need to add a few safeguards like maximum two claims per five years, but it's probably do some good. Whether it's finanial, incentives or both, it may be enough to trigger some kind of movement.

I'd say 100% bonus = 1/4 of your annual income (capped of course) plus free public transport citywide for six months, would be an appropriate scheme.

And if it's wildly successful, and people start using less fuel/gas, then the lowering fuel tax revenue will probably correspond with lowering road growth investment demands, along with slightly less need for incentives such as this.

[Cool Hand Linc]

Specop__007 wrote

it doesnt make sense to tax based on engine size. It should be taxed based on MPG. Thats a true consumption based tax.

Spec, I actaully really like the consumption bases tax idea. It really does make sense. Paying for driving a status symbol would make it even more of a status symbol.

I can see in the future, one guy on his moped says to the other guy on his moped.

"Wow dude, check out that hummer that guy's settin in." The second guys says, "Yaa, You know that dude has some serious ching ching look at all that bling bling." The first guy says, "Yaaa, dude, Hey, I wonder if he ever fill's up the tank and takes it for a ride." (both begin laughing and looking very amused) as the second guy says, "WOW DUDE! NO WAY! (both laugh shaking their heads from side to side)Seriously dude, My mom and dad told me stories about seeing people who drove Hummers." first guy, " I don't really believe them cause NOBODY ever does that. Hummers are all about stylen and looking good, man. Dude!, You and I both know thats the way its always been." second "Ya' man, mom used to tell me stories like that when I was little. man, I never believed her though."

Sorry, I was just day dreaming about my grandson and his friend....

Better moped than dead! Raise the taxes for our grandkids sake![/quote]

[hymalaia]

I was thinking about this recently. One idea I came up with would be to have two sets of gas taxes. One for commercial and one for civilian purposes. The latter would be much higher, of course. This lessens the blow to our economy in that big trucks can still haul product around the country. Of course, you'd have to regulate this kinda thing and that might be a pain. But I get sick of these people who buy a giant truck and SUV for their "business" and then use the thing recreationally.

Anyway I like this idea of a seperate tax becuase it would encourage people to move closer to work, combine trips, ride a bike, take transit etc. While at the same time would allow them to keep their job or buy cheap crap at Wal-Mart (provided they could get there, heh).

[Cool Hand Linc]

I was thinking that allowing the truckers to hall triples or even quads would help. Slow them to 65 max speed and restrict them to main highways. Let little trucks take the trailers to a local spot but the "big" trucks could pull several more trailers. Thus making for some savings.

[kelee877]

I put gas in my car the other day and the price was 92.9 and as I looked at the sign I realized that they never took into thought that gas might go over a dollar a litre..and if you look at all those nice tall signs there are only 3 slots to put numbers..will we the consumer have to suck up the cost of replacing all of those signs so they can put the price at 102.9 or will they stop the .9 or .5 what ever they put at the end.. and only be able to put the price at lets say 122 a litre..

[kelee877]

This is in Canada..where I see these signs...

[Leanan]

As I recall, some U.S. gas stations started pricing gas in liters during the '70s oil crisis. This was because the price per gallon was too large to fit their signs and pumps.

I guess here in U.S., we could always do that again. One advantage of not switching to metric.

[strider3700]

I've seen quite a few places when I was in victoria advertising 101.4 I think they kept the signs but went to thinner numbers.

[TheTurtle]

Maybe they'll just come up with a new denomination of currency, say the Decadollar, where, of course, 1 Decadollar = 10 dollars.

Then gas can be charged in terms of dollars per litre rather than cents per litre and the amount displayed as 92.9 would actually be a percentage of decadollars rather than a percentage of dollars.

Problem solved.

[RonMN]

Maybe they'll just start charging by the ounce

[aahala]

Is that .9 in little tiny numbers like it is in the US?

If so, you could go to scientific notation, such as 10 to the 4th, which could
be needed about 2015.

[Grimnir]

...or they could just leave the left-most number off, since it's usually pretty obvious what it is.

[MD]

If they tried to leave the left most number off, some joker would sue them for false advertizing.

[Pablo2079]

Actually, up in Canada it isn't always .9 (like it is down here).

[k_semler]

I renember in 1997 during a band trip, the price at a Canadian station was $0.49 (CA) per litre. It seemed like a damn good deal until I figured out that it was about $1.75 per gallon, and that was when it was only $1.10 a gallon here in the states. Now, if it dropped down to $1.75 a gallon, I would stock up on it, (I have access to a 550 gallon tank for exactly that purpose.)

[kelee877]

one litre of gasoline here at 92.9 a litre equals 3.71 a gallon...yucky

[aahala]

Is it primarily tax that makes gas so much more expensive than
in the US? Anyone know what the actual tax is in Canada.

In the US, the federal tax is 18.4 cents per gallon and the state or local
tax varies, but usually in the range of 20-23 cents.

I'm metrically challenged, nor do I know the currency exchange rate, so please cite the figures per US gallon.

[strider3700]

Most pumps up here have a little sticker that shows the percentages of the price breakdown. Various taxes are over 50% I think but I never paid much attention. I like the things the extra taxes get us.

[k_semler]

What do the extra taxes get you, (as an individual)?

[kelee877]

pot holes in the roads and garbage along the highways..that is what the extra taxes get you..cause all the extra money earned goes into the governments personal pockets