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Comment by mtgx | Hacker News Reader

Trucks do...wait for it...1,400x more damage to roads than standard passenger vehicles do.

We could put the tax on each tire. $1 per tire for a Miata, $100 per tire for an 18-wheeler. Just look at the tire load rating.

Also, tax based on tire speed rating, to capture the 0.5 m v^2 energy.

This is the solution I ended up settling on. I can't think of any other use-indexed item for a vehicle that you can tax. It fixes the ridiculous registration pricing for people who rarely use their vehicles. Fixes the odd taxing of high capacity trailers. Fixes the indexing on damage caused to the roads as you mentioned. The only real downside I can see is it puts pressure on drivers to not replace old unsafe tires

Probably because they transport 1,400x more economic goods?

No, because road damage is proportional to axle weight to the fourth power.

And axle weight comes from the weight of the cargo be it human or goods...

edit: just looked up what you said, really interesting, but makes me wonder if the transport of goods in smaller lorries for instance would ultimately be beneficial when you factor in cost of fuel, maintenance etc

Yes, but note the "to the fourth power".

But EVs themselves are very heavy compared to similar gas powered cars.

A truck still does orders of magnitude more damage. "To the fourth power" makes a big difference.

What about EV trucks?

Then the cost of those goods should reflect the cost they put on the road transport system. It may make rail more competitive, or increase the incentive for local manufacture.

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