$7 gas is necessary according to a new report if transportation emissions are to be reduced to EPA targets by 2020. What's more, providing tax credits for electric and hybrid vehicles would backfire. The report recommends steep gas tax increases.
To meet the EPA's 2020 targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 14%, the cost of gas would have to increase to $7 a gallon, according to a March report by researchers at Harvard's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs.
"Most of their models assumed an economy-wide carbon dioxide tax starting at $30 a ton in 2010 and escalating to $60 a ton in 2030. In some cases researchers also factored in tax credits for electric and hybrid vehicles, taxes on fuel or both.
In the modeling, it turned out that issuing tax credits could backfire, while taxes on fuel proved beneficial."
'Tax credits don't address how much people use their cars,' said Ross Morrow, one of the report's authors. 'In reverse, they can make people drive more.'
"Researchers said that vehicle miles traveled will increase by more than 30 percent between 2010 and 2030 unless policymakers increase fuel taxes."
Thanks to Ron McLinden
FULL STORY: Fuel Taxes Must Rise, Harvard Researchers Say
GM's Electric Vehicle Future Arrives Early in Detroit-Hamtramck
GM's first non-internal combustion engine vehicle assembly plant will be in the form of 35-year-old plant straddling the Detroit-Hamtramck border thanks in part to a $2.27 billion state tax credit. Electric pickups, SUVs, and AVs will be produced.
N.Y.C. Saving Money With Electric Vehicles
The price of electric cars is dropping, and this together with lower lifetime costs makes them a good alternative for vehicle fleets.
Lyft Goes Greener With EVs
Lyft will add electric vehicles to its rental fleet and offer riders the option to request hybrid and electric vehicles.
Amtrak Ramping Up Infrastructure Projects
Thanks to federal funding from the 2021 infrastructure act, the agency plans to triple its investment in infrastructure improvements and new routes in the next two years.
Ending Downtown San Francisco’s ‘Doom Loop’
A new public space project offers an ambitious vision—so why is the city implementing it at such a small scale?
Proposal Would Transform L.A.’s ‘Freeway to Nowhere’ Into Park, Housing
A never-completed freeway segment could see new life as a mixed-use development with housing, commercial space, and one of the county’s largest parks.
How to Build for Aging in Place
Why developers should place more emphasis on building homes for aging residents and multigenerational living.
Bringing Planning Back to the People
Has the profession given in to corporate interests, and is there another way forward?
Denver Could Put Pause on New Traffic Circles
The city’s fire department has asked for a moratorium on new traffic circles, installed as a traffic calming mechanism.
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Washington University
Mpact: Mobility, Community, Possibility
City of Helena
Lassen County Planning and Building Services
City of San Carlos
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
