Australia: Report urges vehicle congestion charge

Australia must reduce its reliance on oil and consider imposing vehicle congestion charges in major cities, a key report on the country’s future oil supply suggests.

The analysis by the Senate’s bipartisan Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport committee also calls for increased funding for ethanol research to help develop the biofuels industry.


The document, tabled in parliament on Wednesday, contains 10 recommendations aimed at shoring up Australia’s future energy supply and making the country less dependent on fossil fuels.

It suggests a congestion charge, which Australian governments have been reluctant to introduce as a means of combating gridlock and vehicle pollution.

“If motorists are not required to pay for the costs they impose on others, their behaviour will not respond to the full cost, and economically inefficient overuse of the road will result,” it says.

The Age