Illinois State Senate President John Cullerton released a infrastructure funding plan earlier this month that includes a proposal for a vehicle miles traveled tax.
"A new proposal to pay for fixing Illinois' roads could use devices to track how far Illinois drivers have traveled and tax them by the mile," reports Mike Riopell. Riopell explains how the vehicle miles traveled (VMT) tax, as such a scheme is called, would work. The current proposal would allow drivers two options for taxing their VMT, with provisions made for privacy concerns.
Also important is the why of the proposal. According to Riopell, the "plan from Senate President John Cullerton…is aimed at gasoline tax revenues that have fallen as drivers have bought more fuel-efficient cars.
In a separate article, John Greenfield reports on the political context for the proposal, which follows a report released by the Metropolitan Planning Council earlier this month about the state's $43 billion needs in transportation infrastructure spending. Greenfield also reports that the path to approval for the current bill is potentially too ambitious for a short timeline. Ryan Griffith-Stegink, spokesperson for the Metropilitan Planning Council is cited in the article predicting that the VMT tax will take three to five years to implement, if at all.
Yet another article by Natalie Martinez includes a television report on the news of the proposal.
Read the full story: Tax Illinois drivers by the mile?
Connecticut Among States Competing for Federal Grants to Study Mileage Fees
Connecticut state legislators may not like vehicle-miles-traveled (VMT) fees, but that hasn't stopped the state Department of Transportation from joining other states in applying for $2.1 million from the U.S. DOT to study the road user fee.
Can State Lawmakers Make the Case for Road Charges?
More state legislatures are considering fees based on vehicle miles traveled as a replacement for declining gas tax revenues.
California Poised to Lose Up to $4 Billion in Gas Tax Revenue
States must find other ways to fund transportation projects as the transportation sector moves toward decarbonization.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
‘Going backwards:’ Baltimore mayor, students rally against state's transit funding plan
Maryland's proposed six-year plan provides no funding for Baltimore’s BMORE bus program and reduces its road maintenance funding.
Detroit to transform waterfront with $2.2 billion investment
Developers will convert about 18 acres of unused parking lot space into civic spaces.
A 3D concrete printer may solve Virginia’s housing crisis
The printer is able to build concrete walls much faster than humans, and can do so directly at job sites.
Newsom vetoes high-speed rail supervision bill after agency receives condemnatory audit
The audit found the CHSRA approved almost $600,000 in unallowable travel expenses.
Nation sees first electric plane-boat hybrid take off in public demo
The Viceroy Seaglider can fly at speeds of 180mph for up to 180 miles.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Thousand Oaks
City of Wisconsin Rapids
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA)
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello