United States Department of Transportation
i
From fuel taxes to mileage-based user fees : rationale, technology, and transitional issues.
-
2011-08-01
-
[PDF-526.02 KB]
Details:
-
Creators:
-
Corporate Creators:
-
Subject/TRT Terms:
-
Publication/ Report Number:
-
Resource Type:
-
Geographical Coverage:
-
Corporate Publisher:
-
Abstract:Two national commissions established by the U.S. Congress recommend replacing the current system of funding
transportation based on fuel taxes with a new distance-based system of user fees. The State of Oregon has done a
pilot project demonstrating a system for transitioning to mileage-based fees by paying the fees at the gas pump. The
University of Iowa has conducted pilot tests around the country to determine how drivers respond to a mileagebased
fee approach using GPS-based technology. The Puget Sound Regional Council has conducted a test of
congestion tolling. Finally, the Minnesota Department of Transportation is testing an approach for collecting
mileage-based user charges using commercially available smartphones with built-in GPS devices, in which the
charge element is just one of the applications.
While there have been discussions among many transportation leaders regarding why fuel taxes are no longer a
good way of funding the transportation system, there is by no means a public understanding of why this is so. The
public assumes that the taxes they pay at the pump are paying for the system, and that if funding problems exist,
they are due to waste and inefficiency. This examination–of the rationale, technology, and transitional issues in
shifting from a financing system for surface transportation based on fuel taxes to one that is based on a mileagebased
user fee (MBUF) traveled or vehicle-miles traveled (VMT) fee–sets the stage for a policy discussion on
transportation-related user fees and lays the groundwork for an extensive public outreach effort.
-
Format:
-
Collection(s):
-
Main Document Checksum:
-
Download URL:
-
File Type:
