Experts say surcharge on multiple car owners will not work
11 Sep 2013|3,028 views
Levying a surcharge on owners of several vehicles would not only be hard to implement but it also probably would not make it easier for people who need a car to get one, said observers yesterday.
National University of Singapore (NUS) Transport Researcher Associate Professor Lee Der Horng noted that only about seven percent of motorists have more than one car. He added that a surcharge was unlikely to affect the rich and at the end, it would really hit the middle-income, those who have two cars for family purposes.
An online survey conducted by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) found that over 70 percent of respondents wanted a surcharge on those who own more than one car. But the measure was ruled out when it announced changes to the Certificate Of Entitlement (COE) system on Monday. The LTA said that it was concerned over how effective such a levy would be and how it might impact larger households.
The LTA also noted that the tiered Additional Registration Fee (ARF) and higher road taxes for premium car buyers already addressed social equity in car ownership.
Prof. Lee felt that the social equity issue could be addressed by allocating more COEs to Category A when the new criteria for mass- market cars kick in next year.
Transport Economist Associate Professor Michael Li from the Nanyang Business School said that the second and subsequent cars are typically used by family members during off-peak periods and so do not contribute much to congestion. "A levy would create additional social cost... there's administrative and enforcement costs. And people can find ways to bypass these restrictions," added Prof. Li.
Levying a surcharge on owners of several vehicles would not only be hard to implement but it also probably would not make it easier for people who need a car to get one, said observers yesterday.
National University of Singapore (NUS) Transport Researcher Associate Professor Lee Der Horng noted that only about seven percent of motorists have more than one car. He added that a surcharge was unlikely to affect the rich and at the end, it would really hit the middle-income, those who have two cars for family purposes.
An online survey conducted by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) found that over 70 percent of respondents wanted a surcharge on those who own more than one car. But the measure was ruled out when it announced changes to the Certificate Of Entitlement (COE) system on Monday. The LTA said that it was concerned over how effective such a levy would be and how it might impact larger households.
The LTA also noted that the tiered Additional Registration Fee (ARF) and higher road taxes for premium car buyers already addressed social equity in car ownership.
Prof. Lee felt that the social equity issue could be addressed by allocating more COEs to Category A when the new criteria for mass- market cars kick in next year.
Transport Economist Associate Professor Michael Li from the Nanyang Business School said that the second and subsequent cars are typically used by family members during off-peak periods and so do not contribute much to congestion. "A levy would create additional social cost... there's administrative and enforcement costs. And people can find ways to bypass these restrictions," added Prof. Li.
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