Editorial by the writer, published in Dawn on May 16, 2005



Road user charge



THE Sindh government’s plan to introduce a road user charge in place of motor vehicle tax is not a new one. Under the proposal, vehicle owners will have to pay a certain tax per litre of fuel purchased and it will be added to the price of the fuel and will be payable at the time of filling. While the actual rate has not been decided, according to one report it will be half a rupee per litre for petrol and 30 paisa per litre for diesel. This means that higher consumption of fuel will amount to a higher road user charge. The assumption is that a motorist who wants to purchase, say, a full tank of petrol is going to be using the road network more than someone who wants to fill only five litres in his vehicle. A higher quantum of use then logically requires the motorist to pay a higher amount in tax.

Another advantage of replacing motor vehicle tax with a road user charge has to do with evasion. As things stand, a large proportion of vehicle owners do not pay the motor vehicle tax. This is partly the result of the failure by the excise and traffic departments to clamp down on motor vehicle tax evaders and partly the consequence of cumbersome procedures and long waits for those who pay the levy. The road user charge will bypass all of this because the vehicle owner will have no option but to pay since it will be charged at the time of filling fuel. Besides, there will be an incentive for vehicle owners to try and conserve fuel and perhaps cut down on all but essential drives which will have a positive effect on traffic congestion and rising air pollution. Assuming that the road user charge will not be exorbitant, it is something that the Sindh government should introduce.