EV alternative for light/medium duty trucks
So much wheel spinning on EVs, what if they are not the right path forward? The biggest problem with renewable power and EVs is storage, the second is storage, and the third is storage. Another pat...
Forum Discussion
We should be able to agree about somethings. As RVers we want good roads, and as consumers we need good roads to get products we want/need. And the only practical way to have good roads is public funding. And because of the shape the roads are in, with millions of dollars of unfunded repairs needed, the current fuel tax method is not sufficient. And with more vehicles using alternative sources of power, the situation will get worse.
Now one major assumption I make, would be willing to change if somebody could show it invalid. That is a 5000 lb vehicle driven 1000 miles on highways will do a given amount of damage to the roadway. The road doesn't know or care if that vehicle uses 100 gal of diesel, 50 gal of diesel, 65 gal of gasoline, 30 gal of gas, or a cord of hardwood in a steam boiler. I think most of use would have a hard time explaining to a first grader why they should pay different amounts for the same road.
IMHO, the most fair way would be a per mile tax, with some increase that goes up with the weight of vehicle. But that leaves some major questions. How much per mile would be needed to replace the fuel tax to repair the roads? I don't know, but I'm sure it must be higher than the average fuel tax paid. (Remember we aren't now paying enough to have good roads)
Then how do we know how many miles each vehicle drives. Monitor in real time would be a real invasion of privacy. Self reporting by itself would not work. Self reporting, with a certainty that cheating would be caught, sever punishment when caught? Like check mileage on vehicle at every plate renew, no renew and fine if miles not reported. This would not eliminate the issue of people that live near a state line, live/register car in one state, do a lot of driving in another. (Like fill your tanks in the state that has the low fuel tax/pump price) But much of highway funding is at Federal level, so not take much adjustment to correct.
Now one major assumption I make, would be willing to change if somebody could show it invalid. That is a 5000 lb vehicle driven 1000 miles on highways will do a given amount of damage to the roadway. The road doesn't know or care if that vehicle uses 100 gal of diesel, 50 gal of diesel, 65 gal of gasoline, 30 gal of gas, or a cord of hardwood in a steam boiler. I think most of use would have a hard time explaining to a first grader why they should pay different amounts for the same road.
IMHO, the most fair way would be a per mile tax, with some increase that goes up with the weight of vehicle. But that leaves some major questions. How much per mile would be needed to replace the fuel tax to repair the roads? I don't know, but I'm sure it must be higher than the average fuel tax paid. (Remember we aren't now paying enough to have good roads)
Then how do we know how many miles each vehicle drives. Monitor in real time would be a real invasion of privacy. Self reporting by itself would not work. Self reporting, with a certainty that cheating would be caught, sever punishment when caught? Like check mileage on vehicle at every plate renew, no renew and fine if miles not reported. This would not eliminate the issue of people that live near a state line, live/register car in one state, do a lot of driving in another. (Like fill your tanks in the state that has the low fuel tax/pump price) But much of highway funding is at Federal level, so not take much adjustment to correct.
