Blacksmith

EV road user charge is probably a bit premature.

https://www.carexpert.com.au/car-news/australia-delays-ev-road-user-charge-slammed-as-thinly-veiled-tax
Approximately 350k EVs registered in Australia, out of 16 million.

2.1% is pretty low. Not a really significant number. They should probably wait until 10-15% of the market, otherwise it's another reason not to consider it.

Unless the policy makers can make a reasonable decision that takes into account vehicle weight and the number of KMs travelled it is probably going to be a simplistic charge that will be more of a virtue signal to the fossil fuel users.

#auspol #EV

1:27pmWeb
Show threadAnders Cornelius Madsen1h ago

@Blacksmithoz

"In August 2025, the New Zealand government announced plans to remove its fuel excise and instead apply its road user charge (RUC), based on distance travelled and vehicle weight, across all vehicle types by 2027. "

If "all vehicle types" also means heavy types like trucks (or semis, depending on where you are from), this will either become insanely expensive for haulers or have a pretty minimal effect on cars for personal use, won't it?

We have something similar in Denmark, but here it has been based - at least to some extent - on the emissions from the vehicle. That means that large and clean gets an advantage over small and dirty, at least to some extent.

It'll be interesting to see how this will be implemented - based on our experience, it's almost impossible to make it fair for everybody, and I think that it's currently being used for a political goal (getting people to drive EVs) here in Denmark.

I don't necessarily disagree with that goal (and am making a good saving right now by running an EV), but it is still a fact, nevertheless.