[Vision2020] Tax by the mile

[Joan Opyr]

Professor Budge,

I guess my question would be what, comparatively speaking, is the damage done by a lightweight hybrid that gets 51 miles per gallon as opposed to something that costs $500 a month in gas?  Let's do the math here -- my car (a 1995 Mercury Tracer) gets 37 miles to the gallon, which means that I'd use 54.06 gallons of gas to drive 2000 miles, the number cited by Mr. Jason Just as the total of his monthly commute.  In Moscow, at present, gas is $1.88 per gallon, so I'd pay $101.63 for my 2000 miles.  Even with his 51 mpg hybrid, Mr. Just says that he's only saving about $300 per month.  Either gas is much more expensive where Mr. Just lives, or he's clocking up more than 2000 miles per month.   

Assuming a gas price of $1.88 per gallon (just for the hell of it), I have to wonder what kind of vehicle Mr. Just was commuting his 2000 miles a month in that could possibly have cost him $500 to operate?  Was it by any chance Ford Excursion?  Or a Humvee?  Or a combine harvester?  Because (and ya'll feel free to correct my math here) it looks to me like Mr. Just was only getting 7.52 miles to the gallon.  I also own a 1976 Chevy Suburban that mostly sits in my driveway and drips oil, but when I do break it out of the mothballs, even it gets about 12 mpg.

So here's the thing -- if you insist on commuting 2000 miles per month in a combine harvester rather than a gas/electric hybrid, then I'd guess that you were doing more road damage than you would if you switched to a lighter weight, more pavement-friendly Toyota Prius.  Hence, it doesn't really matter if the states are collecting less at the pump; it should all even out because they'll need to perform less road maintenance.  Or, to put it another way, those vehicles which do the most damage to the road, AKA large trucks, SUVs, and tractor trailers, will be justly obliged to pay the bulk of the gas taxes.

How's my Democratic answer, Professor Budge?  Did I pass the exam?

Joan Opyr/Auntie Establishment
www.auntie-establishment.com
  

----- Original Message -----
From: David M. Budge
Sent: Tuesday, February 15, 2005 1:08 PM
To: Vision2020 Moscow
Subject: [Vision2020] Tax by the mile

(I emailed this previously, but it seems to have fallen into the bit  
bucket - if a duplicate is delivered I apologize in advance.)

What say you to this Republicans and Democrats?

Dave Budge


<http://www.cbsnews.com>
------------------------------------------------------------------------

States Mull Taxing Drivers By Mile
CORVALLIS, Ore., Feb. 14, 2005


College student Jayson Just commutes an odometer-spinning 2,000 miles a  
month. As CBS News Correspondent Sandra Hughes reports, his monthly gas  
bill once topped his car payment.

"I was paying about $500 a month," says Just.

So Just bought a fuel efficient hybrid and said goodbye to his  
gas-guzzling BMW.

And what kind of mileage does he get?

"The EPA estimate is 60 in the city, 51 on the highway," says Just.

And that saves him almost $300 a month in gas. It's great for Just but  
bad for the roads he's driving on, because he also pays a lot less in  
gasoline taxes which fund highway projects and road repairs. As more and  
more hybrids hit the road, cash-strapped states are warning of rough  
roads ahead.Get more from the Web.  FREE MSN Explorer download : http://explorer.msn.com
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