3 ms·

Here are the numbers: Public Expenditure on Roads and Public Transport, 2007-08: £21b Total motoring taxation: £46b (estimate) So, just to make it clear, AFT

Here are the numbers: Public Expenditure on Roads and Public Transport, 2007-08: £21b Total motoring taxation: £46b (estimate) So, just to make it clear, AFTER paying for the roads AND public spending on public transport, motorists contribute a solid £25b to the budget. http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmselect/cmtran/103/10305.htm http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmselect/c...

Retric 13y ago
As long as you ignore the fact the UK is not keeping up with the full costs of maintaining there roads as well as the value of all that land and all the past construction costs then it looks good. Because, maintaining an all that aging infrastructure is not that expensive but building it was. Don't forget £11.911 billion (56%) was capital expenditure when you might think most roads and bridges you want built have already been built. Edit: By not keeping up with infrastructure I mean the average age of there infrastructure is increasing which is not really a bad thing as replacing things early wastes cash but depredation is a real cost.
- mseebach 13y ago
  As for keeping up with maintenance, well, that's just criminal while overcharging motorists £25b a year, no? As for the initial cost, that's harder to figure out, but this (dodgy looking, admittedly) website[1] suggests that a mile of motorway costs £24m to construct. That means that the motorists are "paying off" the roads at a rate of about 1000 miles a year. There are 7500 miles of motorwayways and A roads[2], but motorists have been paying more in taxes than has been spent directly, although not at the current rate, for 30 years, and with no sign of slowing down. 1: https://63336.com/brilliant_answers/2009/06/how_much_does_it_cost_to_build_a_mile_of_motorway_in_the_uk.htm https://63336.com/brilliant_answers/2009/06/how_much_does_it... 2: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/road-lengths-statistics-in-great-britain-2011 https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/road-lengths-stat...
d4rti 13y ago
“Entertainments may be taxed; public houses may be taxed; racehorses may be taxed…and the yield devoted to the general revenue. But motorists are to be privileged for all time to have the whole yield of the tax on motors devoted to roads. Obviously this is all nonsense…Such contentions are absurd, and constitute…an outrage upon the sovereignty of Parliament and upon common sense.” -- Winston Churchill
- Silhouette 13y ago
  That's cute, but the reality is that if you impose a severe tax on people who behave in a certain way, those people are going to expect something in return to justify the discrimination. Using tax as a weapon for implementing social policy is always a dangerous path, and it will remain so until politicians don't always have to answer to their electorates sooner or later.
  - gaius 13y ago
    Indeed. Most people still cling to the belief that NI funds the NHS, instead of just being "income tax plus". Having said that, TV tax does fund the BBC.
    - Silhouette 13y ago
      Having said that, TV tax does fund the BBC. Which also makes money from various other sources, and which also provides numerous radio and Internet services at home in some cases to people who don't need a TV licence, thus demonstrating how silly it is that the government funding element of the Beeb's income wasn't switched to general taxation long ago...
  - d4rti 13y ago
    Should I expect something in return for my beer taxes?
    - Silhouette 13y ago
      I don't see why that is so unreasonable. If people who drink beer also need disproportionate amounts of expensive attention from say the police service or hospitals or courts, it seems fair enough that beer drinkers should make some sort of contribution accordingly. However, even that is a shaky argument unless it applies to most/all beer drinkers and not just a minority who don't drink responsibly. Beyond that, as long as drinking beer is legal, I see little ethical basis for taxing someone who drinks beer more than someone who does not. Why should you contribute more to the cost of something completely unrelated like running schools or buying aircraft carriers than I do, just because your preferred evening drink comes in a pint glass and mine does not?

Retric 13y ago

As long as you ignore the fact the UK is not keeping up with the full costs of maintaining there roads as well as the value of all that land and all the past construction costs then it looks good. Because, maintaining an all that aging infrastructure is not that expensive but building it was. Don't forget £11.911 billion (56%) was capital expenditure when you might think most roads and bridges you want built have already been built. Edit: By not keeping up with infrastructure I mean the average age of there infrastructure is increasing which is not really a bad thing as replacing things early wastes cash but depredation is a real cost.

mseebach 13y ago
As for keeping up with maintenance, well, that's just criminal while overcharging motorists £25b a year, no? As for the initial cost, that's harder to figure out, but this (dodgy looking, admittedly) website[1] suggests that a mile of motorway costs £24m to construct. That means that the motorists are "paying off" the roads at a rate of about 1000 miles a year. There are 7500 miles of motorwayways and A roads[2], but motorists have been paying more in taxes than has been spent directly, although not at the current rate, for 30 years, and with no sign of slowing down. 1: https://63336.com/brilliant_answers/2009/06/how_much_does_it_cost_to_build_a_mile_of_motorway_in_the_uk.htm https://63336.com/brilliant_answers/2009/06/how_much_does_it... 2: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/road-lengths-statistics-in-great-britain-2011 https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/road-lengths-stat...

d4rti 13y ago

“Entertainments may be taxed; public houses may be taxed; racehorses may be taxed…and the yield devoted to the general revenue. But motorists are to be privileged for all time to have the whole yield of the tax on motors devoted to roads. Obviously this is all nonsense…Such contentions are absurd, and constitute…an outrage upon the sovereignty of Parliament and upon common sense.” -- Winston Churchill

Silhouette 13y ago
That's cute, but the reality is that if you impose a severe tax on people who behave in a certain way, those people are going to expect something in return to justify the discrimination. Using tax as a weapon for implementing social policy is always a dangerous path, and it will remain so until politicians don't always have to answer to their electorates sooner or later.
- gaius 13y ago
  Indeed. Most people still cling to the belief that NI funds the NHS, instead of just being "income tax plus". Having said that, TV tax does fund the BBC.
  - Silhouette 13y ago
    Having said that, TV tax does fund the BBC. Which also makes money from various other sources, and which also provides numerous radio and Internet services at home in some cases to people who don't need a TV licence, thus demonstrating how silly it is that the government funding element of the Beeb's income wasn't switched to general taxation long ago...
- d4rti 13y ago
  Should I expect something in return for my beer taxes?
  - Silhouette 13y ago
    I don't see why that is so unreasonable. If people who drink beer also need disproportionate amounts of expensive attention from say the police service or hospitals or courts, it seems fair enough that beer drinkers should make some sort of contribution accordingly. However, even that is a shaky argument unless it applies to most/all beer drinkers and not just a minority who don't drink responsibly. Beyond that, as long as drinking beer is legal, I see little ethical basis for taxing someone who drinks beer more than someone who does not. Why should you contribute more to the cost of something completely unrelated like running schools or buying aircraft carriers than I do, just because your preferred evening drink comes in a pint glass and mine does not?