Really worried about the possibility of “pay per mile”

[Yorkiepud2614]

I’ve been seeing more and more about this new proposal “pay per mile” that would replace car duty (I think). Which the average household bill somewhere around £450 - £600. Lots of reports that it may come in this October.
Living in the Highlands this would completely cripple us. Do people really think the new government will bring this change in?

I live in SE London, from Jan we won't be able to cross the water without paying a toll, ULEZ is already, I believe it will eventually be pay per mile.

KGB news perchance? The Express and the Heil?

And amplified by their useful idiots on social media? which now includes you

Yeah...

More chance of seeing Elvis in Clacton than its MP, given how much time the said MP seems to be spending in the US just now

I said upthread Weight is a great way of doing it. The heavier the electric car the more electric it uses to propel and the more damage it does to the roads. Would encourage lighter smaller vehicles.

Lorries do pay an obscene amount of tax, which just passes on to the consumer. That said I’m in an area of a lot of heavy goods vehicles (the really big grabber Lorries) and our roads are shocking. Absolutely shocking

We don't encourage lighter, smaller, vehicles, though. In the name of road safety (?), they are getting bigger and bigger! Compare a modern Mini to an original 60s one: they are tiny! You could say the same about the VW Golf.

Anyway, pay-per-mile, trackers recording where you go and how fast you drive, just shoot me now! Awful Orwellian shit.

All they would need to due is scrap road tax, or whatever it's called these days, and increase fuel duty, no need for electronic gizmos. It would also mean that visitors would be paying it too and it would counterbalance the toll roads,

Rachel Reeves needs to get her money from somewhere!

To be fair to their dear representative, he did say when asked if would be standing 'Who would want to spend 5 years of Friday nights in Clacton"', or something like that!

Not very fair for people who have no alternative. But the wonks in Westminster have no clue about alternative transport cost/availability outside of the centre of London and other big cities.

Fuel duty is dead in the water now that electric cars are going to be the "norm" within a decade or so.

Even if they pay higher car costs, they'll just claim it back on expenses.

Sorry - haven't read rhe whole thread, but if you read the mileage off the car each MOT, that would mean many are taxed for miles driven outside the country (I.e. ROI or on the continent). Surely our government cannot tax us on our activities outside of its jurisdiction?

Yet another policy designed around and for those that live in cities where there is public transport and everything is on the street corner. I cannot walk out of my house because there is no pavement and lots of bends in a very narrow road. the nearest shop for milk is over 3 miles away. rural isolation is a real issue yet politicians cant wait to rush off to London and forget us.

If you believe it even exists.

No one has brought any evidence to the table yet that this is even a real consideration.

I think that it may be more like the European model of tolls on motorways?

I agree with this.

I haven't read the full thread but I think it's silly/pointless to panic about something that hasn't been announced by the government at all. It isn't policy. It's a rumour. Most likely will never happen. I've just googled and the only 'news' articles I can find on this are from Auto Express and GBNews. GBNews seem to enjoy finding utter nonsense to wind people up over.

Electric cars which are significantly heavier and therefore inflict more wear and tear on the roads!
Of course you're going to have to pay per mile 🤷🏻‍♀️

You’re already paying per mile. Almost the entire cost at the pump is tax of some kind.

I read online that Elvis is living in Clacton. What’s your take on that?

Maybe whilst Farage is in America putting Clacton on the world stage he's here putting Memphis on the stage of Essex?! 😂

Isn't that just one of those mad conspiracy theories like the 15 minute city thing.

I think people give UK governments far too much credit, remember they couldn't even organise people staying at home when they tried, or a better railway, let alone anything more complicated.

Yes, of course, but it won't be via fuel duty will it because electric cars don't use petrol nor diesel.

You can't put more tax on electric as it will affect domestic and business properties, not just cars.

"Per mile" taxes/tolls are inevitable. The only question is how they'll be imposed, i.e. based on black boxes, sat navs, or roadside cameras. Given the proliferation of gantries on busy motorists, I think the smart money will be on "per mile" taxes/tolls on the busiest motorways first using existing infrastructure and then increasing the scope by use of first existing road sign and junction cameras and then increasing the number of those too.

We live in rural southern England , it’s 45 minutes drive to our nearest small town/supermarket. To catch a bus you would have to walk 4 miles out of our village to a bigger village, and that bus only runs in the summer months (and only runs 4x a day, and each journey takes over an hour to get anywhere)
There is no other public transport or taxi service. This proposal would be massively unfair on people living in rural areas, unless they throw money at improving public transport in these areas (which i highly doubt will happen!)

Not for electric cars it's not. That's THE big issue. As more cars are becoming electric, then fuel tax revenue will fall and those billions need to be made up by electric cars somehow.