The Dutch government wants to abolish ownership and sales taxes on automobiles and instead levy a fee on every kilometer driven. The Transport Ministry says the move will cut congestion in half and curb carbon dioxide emissions by 10 percent.
Motorists driving a typical sedan would pay 3 Euro cents per kilometer, or about 7 U.S. cents per mile, under the law, which if passed would take effect in 2012. The tax would climb to 6.7 Euro cents (16 U.S. cents) in 2018.
“Each vehicle will be equipped with a GPS device that tracks how many kilometres are driven and when and where. This data will be then be sent to a collection agency that will send out the bill,” the ministry said in a statement, according to AFP.
The tax would vary by the type and weight of automobile. Buses, taxis, vehicles owned by the disabled and motorcycles would be exempted.
The Dutch cabinet approved the legislation Friday; it must be passed by Parliament before becoming law. Finance Minister Wouter Bos calls the proposal financially irresponsible. According to Radio Netherlands / Expatia, he fears that national budget could take a big hit because people might be less inclined to drive.
Advocates of the tax say nearly six in 10 drivers will benefit because the tax burden will be shifted to people who drive the most and at peak times. The price of a new car also would decrease significantly, because taxes comprise about 25 percent of the sticker price.
What kind of safe guards are built into this system? It sounds like the potential for Big Brother monitoring is huge.Do people realize that less expensive transportation is a critical factor of economic vitality? Increasing the cost of transportation in order to reduce the movement of goods, services and people “by 10%” will have a negative effect on the economy which will result in a lower standard of living for people. The goal of government should be to find ways to lower BOTH the financial and environmental cost of transportation. Doing one without the other is eventually going to be a net loss for both.The showroom price of cars in the Netherlands is quite horrendous too, whenever compared with its neighbours, and a 25% cut would surely be most encouraging for consumers also, creating a golden windfall period of new purchases.
And of course, knowing the where and the when of every vehicle will give the “Authorities” 24/7 pin point accurate information which will deter any untoward and/or criminal behaviour, with theft being most probably stopped overnight if one has to also Chip and PIN the GPS System to drive. Driving without logging on would then have you quickly surrounded and/or immediately monitored as a vehicle driver of especial interest.
And yes, it is also very Big Brother, but what else do you expect from the Dutch, who like to know what you like, so that it can be provided as conveniently and safely as possible.
It is something new to be tried and tuned, and that is always better than stagnation or petrification in progress, surely. Nothing should ever be expected to stay the same.
And with regard to social mobility, if it transpire that all this internet working virtual technology with computers and communications be the death of the traditional commute to work in an office like a battery hen or intensive pig farm environment, with pen pushing humans/intellectual property sharing society discovering that it is able to be much more productive from a homely environment which is Inter Network Connected/Plugged into the GIG* [Global Intelligence Grid], then the plan …”The Transport Ministry says the move will cut congestion in half and curb carbon dioxide emissions by 10 percent.” …. will have proved itself and given the Dutch free office spaces to convert to other uses?
* Which can also be less dynamically interpreted as just a Global Information Grid, when you consider that meta data is just there for seeking and access rather than other using IT to push and feed you Advanced Intelligence, which can even be played/gamed/spun as being Artificial and/or even Alien when Cyber Intel AIgently Designed and Fed to you from a [Personal Space and Cyberspace] Monitor Mentoring to You …….. the Instructive Screen before you. Was this a mounth full.This why i can't live there. I prevert to live in Belgium where the they fight all the time. In the parliament. GTO
