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Trade and economy are vital for a modern society though. If costs were instead born by the shipping companies they'd be put into the price of goods sold. I can
by hnick 6y ago
Trade and economy are vital for a modern society though. If costs were instead born by the shipping companies they'd be put into the price of goods sold.
I can't help but see this as a regressive use tax in many ways, since it'll likely apply to lower value items at a higher proportion which is what poorer people would be buying. The end user pays in either case, but doing it through taxation policy allows for a measured approach.
- URSpider94 6y agoIt’s a little bit regressive as you mention, but forcing the users to pay also encourages businesses to find ways to economize and thus minimize the impact of the tax on their customers. It’s also less regressive to pass along a small amount of tax in the cost of items (the portion of the cost of most things we buy made up by transportation costs is very small, and the tax is a small portion of that), than it is to burden car-less poor people with the cost of building roads that they don’t drive on.
- hnick 6y agoThat actually sounds sensible so maybe you're right. Here in Sydney we just opened a tolled tunnel, and to ease congestion up above on the older commuter road all trucks must use this tunnel. I don't know all the factors but it sounds like the best option for the people, they have a choice and trucks pay their way.