Road Taxes

[+Steve]

Only a fraction of ‘road taxes’ like road fund duty and fuel duty actually get spent on the roads. Most is added to the general taxation pot. Should this be stopped? If not what would you like to see it spent on?

[Jan&tone]

Yes. The road fund licence should be ring fenced for the roads.

It won't be because the government can't afford to do that so all revenue goes into the general pot. Unfortunately.

[Daveyonthemove]

I'd like to see it put towards breeze blocks and wire rope.

Then I would like to see David Cameron tie the breeze blocks to every thug/chav/looter/arsonist who has been arrested for the riots over the last week, and push them over the edge of a boat somewhere close to the arctic circle.

Failing that, it would be nice to see a few pot holes filled in before the winter turns them into caves again.

[jw67]

More definately needs spending on the dreadful state of the roads

[Raistlin]

My £20.00 won't go far... :D

[Daveyonthemove]

I wonder if there is a connection between the road tax and fuel prices.

If small popular cars and hybrids are paying less, or zero road tax, there is a pitfall in the 'takings' so a fuel increase might make up the difference?

I propose that all hybrid drivers are pushing the cost of fuel up!!

(Joke)

[+Steve]

i recently drove across france and I was amazed how great the highways are over there... soon as I got back to the UK the roads were awful.

When will we have great smooth motorways with our tax money?

[Jan&tone]

When will we have great smooth motorways with our tax money?

Never! They are smooth when they are first built but they never seem to be designed for the amount of traffic that actually uses them!

IMO there are two changes that should be made. Firstly foreign lorries should pay something towards the cost of our roads, which they don't at the moment, most don't even buy fuel here.

Secondly as far as low emission cars go (Hybrids and other small engined vehicles) the Government may well decide in the future to 'up' the RFL on these but even though I drive a Hybrid (my second one) I still feel that the RFL should be scrapped in favour of an increase in the amount of tax that is taken from petrol. There would be no chance of anyone not paying it - you buy petrol, you pay the tax!

[balli hi]

i recently drove across france and I was amazed how great the highways are over there... soon as I got back to the UK the roads were awful.

When will we have great smooth motorways with our tax money?

Don't know how far you drove in France Steve, but i used to drive to France on a regular basis and whilst i agree that their highways put ours to shame, i encountered more tolls than you can poke a stick at, it really pushed up the cost of driving across france.

[acetip]

i recently drove across france and I was amazed how great the highways are over there... soon as I got back to the UK the roads were awful.

When will we have great smooth motorways with our tax money?

French roads are like the curates egg, good in places.in Paris the road service is mostly cobbles and that sorts your rattles out.

As to spending road tax on the roads the gov will say we tax beer but we dont supply the pubs with the stuff.

there was a time when the road tax went to the local council

where the tax was purchased and was spent on roads in the area,and potholes untreated was unknown and the roads properly reserviced not a coating of chippings as now.

but things have changed as they do, and not for the better.