As I was driving yesterday, I was listening to some commentary on NPR about the Obama plan to raise CAFE standards so that cars will have higher fuel efficiency. The argument of the speaker was that higher efficiency means that the cars will be less expensive to operate, thereby encouraging people to drive more, perhaps 10-15% more. In the end, this may not reduce our overall gasoline and oil consumption or our carbon output, but instead will lead to more driving, more congestion etc.
In other words, the only way to decrease driving is to make it more expensive, by putting a higher federal tax on gasoline. That is probably politically impossible, but it makes sense to me.
As an urban dweller who doesn't drive that much, I'm all for a high gasoline tax. Governments put sin taxes on alcohol and cigarettes to discourage their consumption. Why not a sin tax on gasoline? What do the rest of you think?
A very sensible solution if you live in one of the big eastern cities with lots of available public transportation. Quite a different story if you live here in the west, where our cities grew in the era of the automobile and public transportation is practically non-existent.
ReplyDeleteI,too, listened to that NPR story and found it convincing. Then again, there is no reliable public transportation around me, so I have to drive to work. What happens to those who can least afford the tax? They can do without other "sins", but not their paycheck.
ReplyDeleteSo how are you going to feel when you have to pay more for all your goods and services? Merchandise arrives in stores with the help of gasoline. The stores aren't going to absorb that cost for you. And service providers...plumbers, electricians, housekeepers...are sure to add on a fuel surcharge. So even though you are an urban dweller, don't think you wouldn't be affected.
ReplyDeleteSally