Congestion Road Charges Proposal.

jambutty · 10-05-2006, 17:11

The new Transport Minister has set aside £10m to encourage industry to come up with a system whereby we motorists can be charged by the mile to counter congestion.

Is this man for real?

There is only one of two ways to counter traffic congestion. Build more roads or restrict car ownership neither of which would be acceptable.

Where it all went wrong was back in the sixties when we working classes could afford to buy cars and of course the motor industry did its damnedest to sell them to us.

So this government and probably the next one and the one after that will get we peasants back where we belong – on foot and using public transport or on highly congested country lanes leaving the motorways and A class roads clear for the wealthy by the back door.

We are already taxed to the hilt with motoring charges of one sort or another and it won’t take much more before the poorest car owner will have to give up his or her car.

A congestion charge will just sped up the process.

SPUGGIE J · 10-05-2006, 17:50

Agree with the assesment you made JB. Some of the roads choke up here faster than Than a store on the first day of the January sale. Dispite widening its getting worse especially if you drive to Edinburgh and Glasgow especially over the Forth Road Bridge. If you cross the FRB you are charged but not on any of the others as this changed a few months ago. Its catch 22 as if people travel to work by bus or train they cannot cope and as investment is low most will stay in their car. They will find a way to squeeze the cash out of drivers regardless of how much wed try and stop it.

Margaret Pilkington · 10-05-2006, 19:20

This government has the cart before the horse. If they put the resources into improving public transport...and made the public transport a real 'service'...and reduced the cost, then I am sure that many people would use public transport rather than drive through congested town. However having said that, years ago there was a corner shop on every street...now you have to go miles to a big supermarket....how many politicians have tried to do a weekly shop with two children and a pushchair....and travel on public transport to do it???????? OK, so I know that you can shop online...but not everyone wants to do that. The monster of the car driving family has been created and will be hard(if not impossible) to destroy. Anyway most governments see the motorist as a cash cow.

garinda · 10-05-2006, 19:21

I'd be better off if drivers were charged per mile as I drive so little, but that's by the by. Surely if the changes encourage some people to wallk rather than drive it's a good thing? Parents doing the school run, when the school's in walking distance is a prime example. London has congestion charges but it is still quicker to use public transport than to drive.

As for the journey between Glasgow and Edinburgh, give me the train any day. The M8 is scarier than any roller coaster.

Gayle · 10-05-2006, 19:24

It's typical of everything these days - you can't do something unless you've conducted the research which usually tells you the things that common sense would tell you in the first place.

SPUGGIE J · 10-05-2006, 19:37

How much would 1/2 lb (454 grammes) of commen sense cost? If i find a bag of it lying around I would mail it to the transport dept as they are in desperate need of it. Yet pound to a penny they wont understand why moterists are getting mad again.

garinda · 10-05-2006, 19:42

Higher earners pay more tax, why can't those who drive more pay more?

It may not happen in our lifetime or our childrens, but oil won't last forever, the more we conserve must surely delay the chaos that will result when it does, or worse if there was a major war in the oil producing countries of the world.

SPUGGIE J · 10-05-2006, 19:48

When the oil is no more the rich will be richer. No car = no tax insurence petrol repairs etc and as they will need to walk no need for a personal trainer. Then we can shout at them "welcome to the real world"

garinda · 10-05-2006, 19:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by SPUGGIE J

When the oil is no more the rich will be richer. No car = no tax insurence petrol repairs etc and as they will need to walk no need for a personal trainer. Then we can shout at them "welcome to the real world"

When the oil runs out we will be back in the Middle ages. Most of our food is imported, and we won't be able to afford to import any. We'll have anarchy in the UK for real.

The horse will be king again, as long as we are not forced to eat 'em all first.

entwisi · 11-05-2006, 06:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by SPUGGIE J

How much would 1/2 lb (454 grammes)

Heh Spuggie, 454g is 1 lb not 1/2!!!

chav1 · 11-05-2006, 09:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by garinda

Higher earners pay more tax, why can't those who drive more pay more?

they do simply because they use more petrol hence they pay more tax

instead of taxing the motorist and the smoker to pay for the goverments spending why dosnt the govenment hand less money out to imigrants and such so that they wont need to tax us as much to pay for them

simply put , if theres only a certain amount of money available on the current tax system instead of taxing us more the government should make do with what it has and not come to US because THEY havnt spent our money wisely.

peopel have to make their wages last and cant go running for help if they blow their wages so why shouldntthe govenment have to make do with what it gets

for example the government decided to give unwanted asylum seelers £1000 to sod off home , now if the govenment had the money spare to do this then although still a disgusting idea it wont effect taxes but to come up with stupid ideas like this and fund many other stupid projects then tax the public even more to pay for them is unacceptable

SPUGGIE J · 11-05-2006, 11:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by garinda

When the oil runs out we will be back in the Middle ages. Most of our food is imported, and we won't be able to afford to import any. We'll have anarchy in the UK for real.

The horse will be king again, as long as we are not forced to eat 'em all first.

Well you can gaureentee there will be fewer vegitarians and animal rights bods as they will have to catch and grow their own food. To think something as simple as no oil can clear up problems galore.

Hols will be on steam ships and clippers nice very very nice.

SPUGGIE J · 11-05-2006, 11:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by entwisi

Heh Spuggie, 454g is 1 lb not 1/2!!!

Opps sorry. never could get the handle on metric.

better go back to school and start again.

entwisi · 11-05-2006, 11:27

dd noone else see the top gear where they ran a car on methane from cow poo?

You could also run a car (diesel engine) on Rapeseed hence giving the farmers something to do as well

jambutty · 11-05-2006, 11:49

Back in the fifties public transport was frequent, cheap, on time and well used Margaret. The driver drove the bus/tram and the conductor collected the fares and kept order on the bus. As people bought cars the bus passengers lessened until it became uneconomic to run that sort of service.

In Blackburn at peak times there was a bus every 6 minutes from the town centre to an outlying district like Shadsworth Estate or Preston New Road and if there were a large queue for one particular bus route in the town centre the Inspector would put on an extra bus. Off peak there was a bus every 12 minutes. Buses from town to adjoining town were every 15 minutes and Ribble buses catered for longer journeys.

Quote:

Higher earners pay more tax, why can't those who drive more pay more?

People already pay by the mile garinda – its called the tax and VAT on petrol/diesel. The further you travel the more fuel you will use ergo pay more tax.

The technology is here today to run cars on renewable bio-fuels and some people do so already much to the chagrin of this government. We pay farmers not to grow foodstuff so why can’t they grow crops that provide the bio-fuel instead?

Sorry I forgot the extremely powerful oil lobby is preventing it from happening because it might decimate the industry. The production of petrol and diesel is only a small part of the industry and lubricating oil will always be needed to lubricate machines plus the other thousand and one uses that crude oil produces.