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| Pay-per-mile road tax plan wins £250,000 Wolfson economics prize | Pay-per-mile road tax plan wins £250,000 Wolfson economics prize |
| (1 day later) | |
| A graduate transport planner has won a £250,000 prize for a plan to improve Britain’s ailing roads with a proposal to scrap fuel and vehicle taxes and replace them with a pay-per-mile charging scheme. | A graduate transport planner has won a £250,000 prize for a plan to improve Britain’s ailing roads with a proposal to scrap fuel and vehicle taxes and replace them with a pay-per-mile charging scheme. |
| The scheme would reward users of lighter, cleaner vehicles and ensure a steady stream of revenue to the exchequer (pdf), with the £27bn received annually from fuel duty now jeopardised by electric vehicles. | The scheme would reward users of lighter, cleaner vehicles and ensure a steady stream of revenue to the exchequer (pdf), with the £27bn received annually from fuel duty now jeopardised by electric vehicles. |
| Gergely Raccuja, 27, said that allocating 20% of funds directly for road repair would raise enough money to eradicate the UK’s potholes in five years, persuading the judges of the 2017 Wolfson Economics Prize, which asked for proposals for funding better, safer roads in a fair way while benefitting the economy and the environment. | Gergely Raccuja, 27, said that allocating 20% of funds directly for road repair would raise enough money to eradicate the UK’s potholes in five years, persuading the judges of the 2017 Wolfson Economics Prize, which asked for proposals for funding better, safer roads in a fair way while benefitting the economy and the environment. |
| Raccuja’s proposal argued that abolishing fuel duty and vehicle excise duty in favour of a simple distance-based charge, with heavier and more polluting vehicles paying more, would be fairer and restore trust between government and motorists. It would also ensure revenues in an era of electric and autonomous vehicles. The charge would be collected by insurers, based on mileage and model, potentially monthly using telematics or as an annual charge. | Raccuja’s proposal argued that abolishing fuel duty and vehicle excise duty in favour of a simple distance-based charge, with heavier and more polluting vehicles paying more, would be fairer and restore trust between government and motorists. It would also ensure revenues in an era of electric and autonomous vehicles. The charge would be collected by insurers, based on mileage and model, potentially monthly using telematics or as an annual charge. |
| The founder of the prize, Next fashion chain boss Lord Simon Wolfson, said it was a “groundbreaking, yet simple” solution. Raccuja beat competition including a proposal for tradeable road miles from the economist Deirdre King and her husband Edmund, head of the AA motoring organisation. Other shortlisted entries suggested rewarding people for changing their driving habits to beat congestion, and using different technologies to impose variable charges for journeys. | The founder of the prize, Next fashion chain boss Lord Simon Wolfson, said it was a “groundbreaking, yet simple” solution. Raccuja beat competition including a proposal for tradeable road miles from the economist Deirdre King and her husband Edmund, head of the AA motoring organisation. Other shortlisted entries suggested rewarding people for changing their driving habits to beat congestion, and using different technologies to impose variable charges for journeys. |
| Raccuja said: “The key to our entry was to keep things simple, yet come up with an answer that was sophisticated enough to deal with an upheaval in cars and road transport which hasn’t been seen since the introduction of the motor car well over a century ago. I hope I can persuade our politicians too that everything to do with our roads could be better.” | Raccuja said: “The key to our entry was to keep things simple, yet come up with an answer that was sophisticated enough to deal with an upheaval in cars and road transport which hasn’t been seen since the introduction of the motor car well over a century ago. I hope I can persuade our politicians too that everything to do with our roads could be better.” |
| Steve Gooding, the director of the RAC Foundation, which provided input to Raccuja’s final submission, said the clock was ticking for policymakers as existing models of tax and spending on roads faced becoming redundant: “The common themes of several entries have been both the pressing need for change and the belief there is a better option to balance what drivers contribute to the finances of the country and what they get in return.” | Steve Gooding, the director of the RAC Foundation, which provided input to Raccuja’s final submission, said the clock was ticking for policymakers as existing models of tax and spending on roads faced becoming redundant: “The common themes of several entries have been both the pressing need for change and the belief there is a better option to balance what drivers contribute to the finances of the country and what they get in return.” |
| Wolfson Economics Prize | Wolfson Economics Prize |
| Transport | Transport |
| Transport policy | Transport policy |
| Tax | Tax |
| Tax and spending | Tax and spending |
| Motoring | Motoring |
| (Money) | (Money) |
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