July 04, 2024
Fuel tax cut leaves super city powerless
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Auckland drivers are paying less at the pump with the scrapping of the regional fuel tax on Monday – but an urban planner says the saving is short-sighted.
The 11.5 cents a litre tax was imposed by Labour in six years ago at the request of Auckland Council to fund transport infrastructure sych as the City Rail link and the Eastern busway.
University of Auckland urban planning lecturer Tim Welch says it had raised about $800 million of the $1.5 billion revenue projected in the 10 year plan.
He says Transport Minister Simeon Brown scrapped the tax without proper consultation with Auckland on the alternative.
“So we’ve lost a large pot of money that we can use to make our decisions on how we want our network to be developed and the improvements we want to make and now that will have to be done at the national level, rather than at the city level,” Dr Welch says.
The congestion charges now being suggested as an alternative could be inequitable for commuters given the lack of sufficient public transport options.