Experts' solution to traffic tax: pay when it's busyA CITY-WIDE tolling system that charges motorists for using main roads at the busiest times of day has been proposed as a radical solution to Sydney's traffic nightmare.
Although politicians and motorists reject a London-style congestion tax, experts yesterday said variable tolling on arterial roads could be the only way to fix the city's gridlock.
The satellite technology that would enable it is around the corner, while peak-period tolling is already operating in several overseas cities to discourage drivers.
Peter Stopher, a professor of transport planning at the University of Sydney, said a city-wide charge would be more effective than a CBD congestion tax.
"What we would do is charge people according to how much they're driving, where and when," said Professor Stopher, of the Institute of Transport Studies.
Under the plan, road use would be measured by satellites and motorists would be tolled for driving in peak hour along congested routes such as Parramatta Road.
Professor Stopher said the technology, which combined the global positioning system and odometers, was "about 90 to 95 per cent there". He has applied for an Australian Research Council grant to conduct testing. "I don't think it would be hugely expensive," he said.
A similar plan has been proposed by Dr Garry Glazebrook, a transport consultant and academic at the University of Technology, Sydney. Dr Glazebrook recently said the first step towards such a scheme could be to introduce a CBD cordon whereby motorists passing one of 18 entry points are charged $6. This could be followed by a GPS-based tolling system covering all roads.
The Sydney-wide plan was supported by David Brown, of the Australian Institute of Traffic Planning and Management, who said it could be an effective traffic management tool if it were to be used for policy, not profit.
The technology could also target congestion outside peak hours - such as Bondi's Campbell Parade on Saturday mornings.
But it would be a mistake to think tolls would make motorists abandon their cars for public transport, Mr Brown said. "It is not just the decadent joy of private motorists. Often you don't have an alternative."
The president of the NRMA, Alan Evans, said motorists were already charged enough, with existing toll roads acting as a proxy congestion tax. He said the city needed better roads planning and public transport. "People don't drive along Victoria Road for the fun of it," he said.
A shorter-term option would be to introduce an off-peak rate for existing tollways, thereby encouraging drivers to travel outside the rush - an option endorsed by the Roads Minister, Eric Roozendaal.
"I'd certainly favour a discounted toll in the off-peak to offer people an incentive," Mr Roozendaal said.
* Meanwhile, Mr Roozendaal and the Opposition transport spokesman, Barry O'Farrell, ruled out a CBD congestion tax even though a 2000 RTA report found public support.
The Lord Mayor of Sydney, Clover Moore, said Sydney could not adopt a London-style charge because it lacked an adequate public transport system to complement it.
"I think it's really worked well for London ... [public transport] is clearly a real priority for them and so they can tell people not to drive into the centre of the city," Cr Moore said. "But we aren't in that same situation ... we don't have a good public transport system."
The chief executive of the Sydney Chamber of Commerce, Margy Osmond, said 93 per cent of Sydneysiders surveyed in a street poll last month opposed the introduction of a congestion tax.
She said a study by the London Chamber of Commerce had found retailers were suffering as a result of the tax there, and called on the State Government to invest more in public transport to fix Sydney roads. "A congestion tax would be a disaster for businesses and residents, and would do nothing to address the underlying cause of congestion," Ms Osmond said.
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