The little paper
New push for city congestion levy
By Andrew West
26mar05
A LONDON-style congestion charge to cut traffic in choked areas of Australia's biggest cities is back on the agenda after a report for a key business group urged state governments to introduce such a levy.
The report, Reforming and Restoring Australia's Infrastructure, commissioned by the Business Council of Australia, says introducing some form of fee on vehicles entering the central business districts and surrounding neighbourhoods could dramatically ease urban congestion.
The report argues that in Melbourne, for example, a congestion charge could cut the number of vehicles on the road and increase the average speed to 22.7km/h, faster than motorists now travel.
"If a congestion charge is imposed on the Melbourne CBD, then the congested vehicle hours return to more acceptable levels, while the average travel speed actually increases to higher than 2001 levels," it says.
The report estimates that urban road congestion costs Australia around $16 billion a year and predicts that in Melbourne, it will double by 2021.
It also forecasts average travel speeds across Melbourne will fall from 19.7km/h to 15.2km/h. In London, the metropolitan authority levies a daily pound stg. 5 ($12) fee on cars entering the city centre. It has cut traffic by 15per cent and congestion by 30 per cent.
But such levies are contentious in Australia, and a spokeswoman for Victorian Transport Minister Peter Batchelor said: "There are no plans to introduce any such tax. The Government has made it clear that it will not be tolling existing roads."
But during last year's Melbourne local government elections, Mr Batchelor conceded there would eventually be a debate about introducing a congestion charge.
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In Sydney, Lord Mayor Clover Moore said she did not have the power to introduce such a toll and would not consider it until the state Government committed itself to improving public transport within a 10km radius of the CBD.
"At the moment, I prefer the carrot, not the stick to ease the city's congestion," she said.
The BCA report was written by Rod Sims, a principal of Port Jackson Partners consultancy and a former deputy secretary in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet.
His report used modelling undertaken by the Victorian Department of Infrastructure, but the department has not endorsed a congestion charge.
The report does not prescribe a specific congestion charge, but suggests a hefty inner-city parking levy in Melbourne.
"In the inner metropolitan area, the average travel speed increases significantly with the introduction of an inner-city parking charge," it says.
"While no one wants to pay a congestion charge, each individual's stance will depend on how they value their time otherwise lost in traffic congestion.
The report says that in inner metropolitan areas, "charges must be an important part of the traffic management mix. Not to utilise them is to condemn inner-city areas to eventual gridlock at certain times."
Yeah, bring it on! "increase the average speed to 22.7km/h"
wow! think how much faster they'd be on a train/tram or a bike 🙄