EV group wants petrol, diesel vehicle owners to be taxed twice

An electric vehicle (EV) lobby group has once again called for a road-user charge to be implemented in Australia, but it doesn’t want the existing fuel excise to be repealed. The Australian Electric Vehicle Association (AEVA) is calling for EVs to be subject to a cost-per-distance charge, and for combustion-powered vehicles to be subject to both this and the existing fuel excise. The group had previously proposed a mass by distance road-user charge (RUC) that would apply to all vehicles, but replace the fuel excise rather than exist in tandem with it. The volunteer-run, not-for-profit organisation wants a RUC to be either introduced gradually over a 10-year period and reach a cost of three cents per tonne-kilometre, or alternatively apply only to vehicles manufactured after 2021.