Congestion Pricing Pitfalls

The ITS community has been a strong proponent of Smart Roads, which would provide drivers with real time information to help traffic flow and improve safety. We've started to see the fruits of these efforts in the form of dynamic signs that indicate traffic conditions.

In some places there are now dynamic speed limits based on the time and day. There are also plans in some areas to implement congestion pricing along certain routes to help reduce congestion by making travel more expensive during peak times.

The future potential of these systems is staggering, and they will provide an eventual pathway to autonomous vehicles (see previous posts, Part 1 and Part 2).

The question though, is how might unintended behaviors manifest themselves? Parking problems? More stress? Gaming of the system? These could negate any intended benefits.

For example, many airports have improvised waiting areas. That is, drivers pull over prior to the airport entrance, park and wait, rather than pay to park. They subvert the system.

The question about congestion pricing is how might motorists respond? It may be in ways that were not at all expected, which could negate the intended benefits.

Could it result in less on-road congestion but more drivers parking at peak hours? More accidents as drivers rush to reduce their tolls? Would this cause more stress than it reduces?

If implemented, will it produce the desired outcomes with minimal undesired side effects? I'm not saying it won't work, but congestion pricing is so complex and specific to the area where it is applied that it should be thoroughly tested and proven.

Source: Automotive Engineering, May 2009 (P. 20)
aei-online.org

Vehicle Miles Traveled – The New Metric for Fees?

According to a recent article in Transport Topics (3/31/2008), Oregon has done a pilot study of nearly 300 motorists who volunteered to be guinea pigs. Their vehicles were fitted with a small GPS data recorder that tracked each.

Of course there are concerns from some about privacy and the “big brother” issue. While I agree that some of those concerns are valid, it really isn’t much different than the GPS features built into our cell phones now.

Anyway, the point of the study was to determine where, when, and how much motorists in the program drove. Instead of charging an 18.4 cent/gallon Federal fuel tax on gasoline as has been the case since 1993, officials are looking at taxes/tolls/fees based on each mile driven, and at what times (congestion pricing).

This is intended to ensure adequate continued highway funding as vehicles become more efficient and use less fuel,

I will point out though that a fuel tax on a per gallon basis will tax constituents on how much fuel they use rather than how much they drive. Right now if you drive a vehicle that gets low fuel economy, you get taxed more per mile than if you drive a more efficient vehicle.

With VMT-based taxes, unless there were provisions to account for your vehicles efficiency, you’ll be taxed on how much you travel. It would be better if drivers taxed on a basis that accounted for both the fuel used and the distance traveled in order to encourage less driving (especially during peak hours) and the use of more efficient vehicles.

Tiered Tolling Proposed In NYC For Trucks

NYC is considering a $21 toll for pre-2007 emission-standards trucks making deliveries in Manhattan during peak hours, compared to $7 for those meeting the ’07 standards. Full article here.

It brings up a point I made last month about this type of restriction becoming more prevalent along with congestion pricing. There are also blanket tolls proposed for passenger vehicles during peak hours as well.

Update: Right after I wrote the above paragraphs, saw this post too.