A novel way to reduce traffic congestion

[Miulang]

The British are looking into a "pay-as-you-go" model (http://www.christiansciencemonitor.com/2005/0609/p01s04-woeu.html) for getting commuters to pay if they drive their cars on British roads during the week. Each car would be outfitted with a "black box" that would be tracked by GPS and mileage would be deducted against a prepaid account. The article says it might cost up to $2.30/mile for a commuter to drive to London.

The really startling thing is since the city of London imposed a tax of about $9 to drive into town, traffic congestion has been reduced by 30%, traffic is down by 18% and millions of dollars have been raised to improve public transportation.

The State of WA is in the middle of a pilot project too, along one of its most congested roadways. Anyone who doesn't carpool can use the diamond lane, but they have to have a black box and they pay a surtax for the privilege of bypassing the long lines of traffic. I know if they made this a permanent fixture in WA, and it cost $1/mi for me to get to work, it would mean spending $50 every day to get to and from work. At that point, even if it would take 2 hours and 3 transfers, all of a sudden, public transportation starts to look darn right appealing.

Maybe Hawai'i should look into something like this, too. I mean, Britain is an island, and Hawai'i is made up of islands. Eventually there will be no room to build more roads; then what will you do? Imagine being able to get from Kailua to Waikiki in less than an eon. :)

Miulang

[helen]

Part of the problem with public transportation here is the amount of wait time at the bus stop waiting for the bus to show up. And to the powers that be waiting for a half a hour for bus is acceptable, at least in the outlying areas. If you happen to be in the area between Ala Moana Shopping Center and downtown, the parts of Waikiki and UH Manoa, the most you got to wait for a bus is around 10 minutes, maybe less depending on the time of day and the traffic situation.

[adrian]

If you happen to be in the area between Ala Moana Shopping Center and downtown, the parts of Waikiki and UH Manoa, the most you got to wait for a bus is around 10 minutes, maybe less depending on the time of day and the traffic situation.
That rule applies for every bus but the Route A bus.

Anyway, what about for the care givers? My Mom has to travel to Kaneohe side almost weekly, amongst other places. Add that with the gas that her van takes, food/drinks along the way and other expenses, then she rather go back to the day care job.

And who will this be billed under? What if the teen takes his father's car out for the evening, while the family goes out?

Will the gov't be watching everywhere we go?

[Miulang]

Will the gov't be watching everywhere we go?
You got it, and it ain't a Toyota, either! ;)
Speaking of Toyotas, if you have your heart set on buying any new Toyota, you might want to think about making that purchase soon. The President of Toyota is so worried by the GM announcement that it will lay off 25,000 workers that Toyota will probably raise its prices on all models so the US government doesn't get upset that the Japanese are selling more cars in the US than any American car manufacturer. On the other hand, you could probably get a new GM vehicle for a real good price. They're so overstocked they're practically giving them away!

Miulang

[adrian]

You got it, and it ain't a Toyota, either! ;)
Then they might as well plant chips inside of our heads, because some of us aren't driving!

[Miulang]

Then they might as well plant chips inside of our heads, because some of us aren't driving!
Hate to tell you this, Adrian, but it's already happening in Mexico and Spain (they plant RFID chips in your arm). Hey, if it's good enough for pets, it's good enough for humans! That's one way they think they will be able to get rid of currency...just put your banking information inside one of those chips and your arm becomes a debit card!

Miulang

[mel]

Typical of Muilang to suggest even more cost to Hawaii's taxpayers, and with government tracking to boot. Socialism and liberalism at its best. I hate GPS because I don't want to be followed, especially by my government. Any government.

[Miulang]

:rolleyes:
Methinks one is going to be hoisted by one's own petard.

Honi soit qui mal y pense. and Illigitimi non carborundum, as my buddies at the Harvard Club would say! :)

[poi cocktail :)]

heavens! a reference to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern (petar), thanks for the memories, fading as they may be :p

[helen]

It might be more cost effective and simpler to raise the fuel tax instead of spending money to buy black boxes to put into cars that supposed to transfer funds between two accounts.

[Miulang]

The difference between an increase in the fuel tax v. a pay as you go plan is everyone who drives a car would be impacted by a fuel tax, no matter how little they drive their cars. With a user tax, only those people who choose to drive alone to work during the week or who can't or won't use public transportation would be charged the fee. The black boxes could be rented, and a separate private company (not the State) could administer the program. The revenues could be used to maintain the roads and help beef up public transportation.

I tell you, if I had to pay $50+ gas + insurance + wear and tear on the car to drive to and from work everyday (even though it only takes me about a half hour each way), a $4 roundtrip bus fare every day would look a whole lot more appealing, even if it meant my having to make 3 transfers and take 2 hours each way to get to and from work.

The cheapest thing the State of Hawai'i can do to reduce some of the congestion is to offer incentives (tax credits) to the larger companies who encourage things like carpooling, flex time, telecommuting, etc. Wouldn't really cost the companies any more money, and would smooth out some of the peak hour traffic so congestion wouldn't be as bad. And maybe it would keep employees a little happier, too (what a concept ;) )

Miulang

[Miulang]

Must've been a really slow news day around the world. This AP story (http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BRITAIN_NAKED_CYCLISTS?SITE=HIHAD&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT) was picked up by the Advertiser and reports on a protest of naked bicyclists in London who were protesting the unnecessary use of cars. The story goes on to say that there were other demonstrations scheduled for the US and Spain, among other countries.

Since I became a recreational bike rider about a month ago, I have become increasingly aware of the perils that bike riders face when competing against cars. It has also made me more careful whenever I encounter bike riders on the road. When I'm in the car, I have more than a ton of protection around me; when I'm on my bike, I only have my ability to steer clear of trouble (and being able to keep my balance) to protect me.

I know most of Hawai'i is not very bike-friendly. If more bike paths were built instead of more roads, it might encourage more people to hit the road on 2 wheels instead of 4. It would help reduce traffic congestion, pollution, give people healthy exercise, and reduce gas consumption, all pluses.

Of course, I wouldn't want to be peddling anywhere in Hawai'i around noontime, and you'd have to wear sunblock SPF 1000. In Europe, everybody rides bikes because it's cheap and very often faster than sitting in a traffic jam.

Miulang

[craigwatanabe]

you know I think if this pay as you go is instigated, the poor will be hurt the most. On the Big Island, there are no public transportation services available for the general public to use except for the Hele On Bus, but it ain't no MTL.

For a poor family working for a living, the commute would be too cost prohibitive so one would opt to just not work and collect welfare. For two of my teenage kids working this summer for Alu Like at the Volcano National Park, it's a 30-mile trip each way working only 6-hours at $6.25 per hour. By the time they paid for their pay as you go, and other state and federal taxes, there wouldn't be a whole lot left over to live on.

I honestly feel instead of taxing those who drive, the government should offer incentives for driving less or carpooling like lower registration fees for those who carpool or to those who can use a flextime to reduce rush hour traffic.

[mel]

I honestly feel instead of taxing those who drive, the government should offer incentives for driving less or carpooling like lower registration fees for those who carpool or to those who can use a flextime to reduce rush hour traffic.

This is one of the better ideas instead of always having to resort to taking more, more, more, and more money away from people's wallets like some of the professed liberals from out of state advocate.

The object of living in Hawaii is to try and keep as much of your personal income in your own pocket for use as you see fit, not on how government can take it away from you to spend on something else, like trains.

[Miulang]

;)
I was the one who posted the alternatives first, because the State of WA has mandated that companies with 50+ employees have to offer flextime, telecommuting, subsidized bus passes, and subsidized car pooling to employees. Every year, my company sends out a survey that's required by the state and we even have company contests for people who make the most of the alternative commuting methods. The latest one that just ended was riding your bike to work for a month. One team (I think this was the team that had all the docs on it) chalked up more than 1,000 miles in one month!

Miulang

[craigwatanabe]

Incentives always work, mandates seldom do. Taxes are a mandate. One incentive is the rising cost of gasoline to consider as an alternative.

Really, if we focused on giving people opportunities to be self-sufficient and give them incentives to do their parts in keeping our country from going bankrupt then we wouldn't need so much taxes.

Realistically because we are a market-driven economy we need to let the markets determine the viability of better traffic management. The problem is that the government controls our public streets. Hmmm that same old equation seems to come to my mind:

Government + Control = Chaos

Ironically that's the formula for a Socialistic form of government, something we Americans strive and fought against...what have be become or are becoming? More government intervention of our lifestyles will only result in this catostrophic formula.

We must change the equation by lobbying for less government intervention in our lives and part of that effort is greater responsibility in governing our own destinies. Yeah...it comes from within to make our nation better, not higher and more taxes.