Managing Traffic Congestion Pricing, the Associated Equity Issues, and Establishment of Sustainable Funding for Transportation Infrastructures

Abstract

Road traffic congestion, partly resulting from inefficient land use plans and the inadequacy of existing transportation infrastructure to transport people from various origins to various destinations, using the same paths, at the same time (without delay) is an issue of concern to humanity”. Inadequate funding for transportation limits the number of roads that can be built to increase the capacity of the transportation network. Road traffic congestion pricing has been identified as a way of reducing congestion, as it makes the cost of travel more apparent to users, but there is concern about equity issues for those who may not be able to afford the price tag. This study used the records of vehicle miles travelled in a country to illustrate the variations in revenue that could be achieved with varied fuel efficiency of vehicles. As an illustration, a comparison of revenue that could have been generated (all other things being equal) using a vehicle-kilometre travel (VKT) pricing system as compared to fuel tax for a 5-year period was also done. This review noted that the VKT ‘road user fee’ pricing system is a viable way to make the cost of travel apparent to motorists and form a basis for equity between those who use fossil fuel vehicles and those who use alternative energy. In addition to presenting a simplified procedure for establishing a sustainable transportation finance system, this study also presented a simplified method to estimate the appropriate fuel tax, as well as VKT road user fee to achieve a self-funded transportation system.