Road user charges require major overhaul - Friedlander
April 30th, 2009
The Road Transport Forum has the scent of victory in its nostrils as Transport Minister, Steven Joyce, ponders the independent review of Road User Charges. The lobby group, which has 4,000 members and associates with a combined 17,500 trucks on the road, may be about to see the fruits of the July 4 nationwide protests last year which prompted the review. CEO Tony Friedlander says “the RUC is in need of a major overhaul - or replace it with a licence fee.”
Changes may come down to how the heaviest vehicles on the highways are assessed. The RTF wants a review of the so-called 4th power rule which maintains heavy vehicles cause exponentially more road wear than lighter ones. The lobby group says a 2nd power relationship would be fairer, based on more recent assessments. Right now, the rules are distortionary and slap transport operators with costs which exceed those in the Aust states of Victoria and Tasmania by some 30%, according to a study commissioned by the RTF. The RUC collection system is also costly and ineffective and the regime encourages avoidance.
Joyce has to balance competing claims from other road user groups who say law changes last year skewed fuel taxes in favour of diesel. The AA maintains users of petrol vehicles are now shouldering 63% of roading costs versus 37% for diesel - amounting to a $289m shortfall.
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