December 29, 2005
THE MANHATTAN PROJECT OF THE WAR ON CARS:
Navigating future for road charges (Paul Rincon, 12/29/05, BBC News)
[I]n a few years, sat-nav will be doing far more than simply telling drivers how to get to their destination. [...]Posted by Orrin Judd at December 29, 2005 2:20 PMPowerful applications are expected on the roads; the Galileo network would allow a vehicle's exact movements to be tracked, presenting new possibilities for road-user charging and tolling.
The precision and availability of the Galileo signal would facilitate the application of charges according to the distance travelled by a vehicle, along with other parameters.
"For example, you might want to vary the charge according to speed, or whether someone is travelling through a city centre," Hans-Peter Marchlewski, general counsellor for the Galileo Joint Undertaking, told the BBC News website.
The time signal produced by Galileo would also allow different charges for driving at different times of the day.
"This we are able to do without any support from bridges or ground stations. You can do everything with the [Galileo] signal," explained Mr Marchlewski.
Each motorist would, of course, need to carry a satellite-linked "smart box" in their car, but Galileo-based systems would also dispense with much of the roadside infrastructure to collect tolls and charges.
Galileo sat-nav could potentially form the basis for general "pay-as-you-go" road pricing proposed for the UK as a replacement for road tax and petrol duty.
I'm afraid I don't understand the animosity to the car. Please explain the position.
Posted by: Jay at December 29, 2005 2:34 PMOh, God no...
First they came for the cars, but because I was not a car, I said nothing...
Posted by: Bruce Cleaver at December 29, 2005 2:57 PMGotta be able to get more taxes somehow, even if it's by tracking people. I mean, after all, we've been told to conserve fuel for years, but since we're doing it, the govt isn't making enough in taxes. So now, we're gonna tax you by the mile. There's just nothing they won't tax if they can.
Posted by: sharon at December 29, 2005 3:21 PMThe Galileo system is the typical EuLite scam where by they will build the system, require everyone in Europe to use it various ways and then charge users fees / taxes on it.
The real question is, how likely is that Galileo will get built when it's managed by the EU?
Posted by: Annoying Old Guy at December 29, 2005 7:43 PMNot too likely. Note that since oj doesn't drive much he's convinced of the justice of taxing drivers. Same logic applies to smokers, though in their case he claims to be acting out of love. I don't read the Bible and don't miss it, so how about a tax of $1000 per page per copy? Seems fair to me.
Posted by: joe shropshire at December 29, 2005 11:27 PMOJ,
If you get to 1,100,000 by 1/3/06, you are up to about 100,000 hits / month. You are on track for about 85,000+
Posted by: Bruno at December 30, 2005 12:54 AMNot more taxes, more just taxes
OK, who is going to volunteer to tell Orrin the truth about Santa?
Posted by: Peter B at December 30, 2005 8:41 AM