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> However, this won't have much impact on SUVs directly Why not? Even an increase from 1.5 tons to 2 tons results in 3.16x the damage on the road. https://en

> However, this won't have much impact on SUVs directly Why not? Even an increase from 1.5 tons to 2 tons results in 3.16x the damage on the road. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fourth_power_law https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fourth_power_law

ndsipa_pomu 3y ago
If that weight difference results in a noticeable tax difference, then lorries will be virtually priced off the road due to the tax. Realistically, the tax would have to be affordable for heaviest vehicles which would make the tax difference between 1.5 to 2 tons negligible. Maybe one way round it is to have tax bands for heavy commercial vehicles and weight-based tax for cars and SUVs. Edit: thought I'd try to work out an example of pricing. If a fourth power tax rate on weight works out to a £100 difference between 2 tons and 1.5 tons, then an 8 ton vehicle would be paying over £37,000
- kergonath 3y ago
  > If that weight difference results in a noticeable tax difference, then lorries will be virtually priced off the road due to the tax. That’s a red herring. Lorries don’t have to be taxed the same way as cars, and actually most of the time are not.
  - michpoch 3y ago
    They absolutely are taxed much heavier than most cars. Truck are charged on most highways in European Union, I expect UK has similar system. They pay per-km driven.
    - kergonath 3y ago
      I am addressing the “but higher taxes will put companies out of business because lorries” straw man that appears a couple of times in the discussion. Taxes for family cars and for professional vehicles are effectively decoupled and can be adjusted independently.
  - maxerickson 3y ago
    If all cars are responsible for some small fraction of road damage, it probably isn't going to have much impact to carefully apportion that fraction of the damage.
  - ndsipa_pomu 3y ago
    > That’s a red herring. Lorries don’t have to be taxed the same way as cars, and actually most of the time are not. Yes, but I can see it being unpopular to introduce a "road repair" tax that is justified based on drivers paying for the damage that they cause to roads and then not apply the same rules to the vehicles that cause the majority of the damage.

ndsipa_pomu 3y ago

If that weight difference results in a noticeable tax difference, then lorries will be virtually priced off the road due to the tax. Realistically, the tax would have to be affordable for heaviest vehicles which would make the tax difference between 1.5 to 2 tons negligible. Maybe one way round it is to have tax bands for heavy commercial vehicles and weight-based tax for cars and SUVs. Edit: thought I'd try to work out an example of pricing. If a fourth power tax rate on weight works out to a £100 difference between 2 tons and 1.5 tons, then an 8 ton vehicle would be paying over £37,000

kergonath 3y ago
> If that weight difference results in a noticeable tax difference, then lorries will be virtually priced off the road due to the tax. That’s a red herring. Lorries don’t have to be taxed the same way as cars, and actually most of the time are not.
- michpoch 3y ago
  They absolutely are taxed much heavier than most cars. Truck are charged on most highways in European Union, I expect UK has similar system. They pay per-km driven.
  - kergonath 3y ago
    I am addressing the “but higher taxes will put companies out of business because lorries” straw man that appears a couple of times in the discussion. Taxes for family cars and for professional vehicles are effectively decoupled and can be adjusted independently.
- maxerickson 3y ago
  If all cars are responsible for some small fraction of road damage, it probably isn't going to have much impact to carefully apportion that fraction of the damage.
- ndsipa_pomu 3y ago
  > That’s a red herring. Lorries don’t have to be taxed the same way as cars, and actually most of the time are not. Yes, but I can see it being unpopular to introduce a "road repair" tax that is justified based on drivers paying for the damage that they cause to roads and then not apply the same rules to the vehicles that cause the majority of the damage.