Gas Tax

Aerial view of Provo, Utah with mountains in background

Utah to Test Personalized Road Usage Pricing

A pilot program will use GPS-enabled devices to track driving habits, allowing cities to use the data to create road pricing fee structures based on hyper-local and individual driving needs.

July 13, 2023 - Streetsblog USA

Diesel big rig truck on California road with mountains in background

California Commission Recommends Infrastructure Improvements

The state’s Transportation Commission outlined three major programs that should receive gas tax funding.

June 14, 2023 - Streetsblog California

Minnesota state capitol building with red flowers on green front lawn

Minnesota Budget Includes Significant Transit Investments

After a contentious debate, the state legislature passed a budget that changes how transportation projects are funded and supports increased transit service in the state.

June 2, 2023 - Governing

A pair of electric cars plugged into charge at facilities in the corner of a shopping center parking lot.

Electric Driving Is the Future; Now Is the Time to Price It

EVs are great, but they’re not perfect. Let’s end their free ride.

August 24, 2022 - Adam Millard-Ball and Michael Manville

Gas Pump

High Gas Costs Making a Small Dent in Carbon Emissions

Americans are driving slightly less due to high prices at the pump, but this reduction in driving is only making a small impact on overall U.S. carbon emissions.

July 11, 2022 - Denver Post

I-84 to I-5 Interstate Freeway in Portland Oregon with Long Exposure Vehicle Traffic Motion

What Is VMT?

A measure of the demand for vehicle travel on public roadways, VMT provides a metric for evaluating the potential impact of road projects and developments and could become an increasingly useful tool for assessing road usage taxes.

March 2, 2022 - Diana Ionescu

gaslamp Quarter

San Diego County Weighs VMT Proposal

San Diego County could tax developers based on projected vehicle miles traveled as part of a new CEQA requirement that replaces Level of Service with VMT.

February 4, 2022 - KUSI

110-10 Interchange

California Governor Proposes Break on Gas Tax Hike

Governor Newsom has urged the state to give residents a 'gas tax holiday' by avoiding this summer's pending increase in the state's fuel tax.

January 13, 2022 - KTLA

Bend, Oregon

Oregon DOT Projects Little Decline in Driving Despite Climate Pledge

Financial projections from the state's Department of Transportation suggest the agency does not anticipate a marked reduction in driving in the next decade.

December 17, 2021 - Willamette Week

Atlanta Traffic

Why Don't State DOTs Believe in Induced Demand?

Despite evidence that widening roadways is only a temporary solution to congestion, a decades-long inertia leads states to continue pushing expansion projects against local opposition.

October 6, 2021 - Bloomberg CityLab

Texas Highways

Op-Ed: Instead of a New VMT Tax, Raise the Gas Tax

Implementing a tax based on miles traveled could disincentivize purchasing more efficient cars and would do little to improve road safety, one columnist argues.

August 20, 2021 - The Hill

Highway Construction

More Details from the Massive Infrastructure Bill and its Amendments

The bill's more than 400 amendments include a VMT pilot, a Texas megahighway, and funding for accessibility at transit stations.

August 9, 2021 - Streetsblog USA

Open Space Trails

Study: Recreational Trails Program Underfunded by Over $200 Million

FHA research shows that multi-use trail users contribute three times as much in gas taxes as the program to build and maintain them receives.

August 8, 2021 - Streetsblog USA

Inland Empire

Inland Empire City Pauses New Gas Station Development

The reasons for a ten-month moratorium on gas station development in the city of Rancho Cucamonga portend a major shift in transportation and land use priorities in the near future.

June 22, 2021 - Daily Bulletin

Freeway houses

U.S. DOT Says Mileage Charge Is Not in Biden's Plan

Secretary Pete Buttigieg's statement that the per-mile-tax concept "shows a lot of promise" caused a stir, but a spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Transportation later claimed it won't be part of Biden's forthcoming infrastructure package.

March 31, 2021 - Business Insider

Gas Pump

Opinion: Gas Taxes Are 'Redlining on Wheels'

With dwindling revenue and a narrow scope for funding projects, it may be time for Washington State to re-evaluate its gas tax in favor of more sustainable revenue sources.

March 17, 2021 - Publicola

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

PennDOT Proposes Bridge Tolls to Fund Critical Repairs

With gas tax revenues projected to fall this fiscal year due to the pandemic, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation argues it needs additional revenue to bridge its growing funding gap and repair crucial infrastructure.

March 2, 2021 - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Cincinnati and Covington

Two Bridges Across the Ohio River in Cincinnati Closed on the Same Day

Two of the transportation connections between Ohio and Kentucky in the Cincinnati metropolitan area were closed on the same day, leaving one side of the Ohio River cut off from the other.

November 13, 2020 - WCPO

Recreational Vehicle

Constitutional Amendment Would Shift Some Gas Tax Revenue to Transit Spending in Nevada

Democratic legislators in Nevada are considering a constitutional amendment that would allow the state to use gas tax revenues for transportation projects other than road construction, maintenance, and repair.

September 20, 2020 - The Nevada Independent

Social Distancing

Gas Tax to Climb More Than 9 Cents a Gallon in New Jersey

A 2016 law that locked in a specific amount of gas tax revenue for project funding every year has required a boost in the tax rate in New Jersey as drivers leave their car at home during the pandemic.

September 1, 2020 - WPVI

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.

Community Development Director

City of Wisconsin Rapids

Professor of Urban Planning

Harvard University Graduate School of Design

Transportation Planner I

KFH Group Inc.

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