2024 AA submissions to Government and other agencies
Submission on Road User Charges (RUC) for PHEVs and BEVs
February 2024
From 1 April 2024, PHEVs (plug-in hybrid electric vehicles) and BEVs (battery electric vehicles) will be included in the road tax system. Until then, they have been exempted in an incentive to encourage their uptake. The exemption was introduced with the intent of removing it once these vehicles reached 2% of the light vehicle fleet, effectively becoming more ‘normalised’.
The AA has always supported this plan. We think the technology is now common enough that these vehicles should start contributing to transport network upkeep and improvements like all other light vehicles. However, we did join with a number of other organisations in the motor vehicle industry in a submission to the Government delivered in February 2024 with our thoughts on what RUC rates should be for these vehicles to make them as fair as possible compared to vehicles running on other fuel types. This submission assisted in getting a lower RUC rate for PHEVs than originally proposed to half that of BEV. BEV now pay $76 per 1000 km in RUC, while PHEV pay $38 in RUC (original proposal was for $53/1000km) as they also use petrol so pay fuel excise duty (FED) at the pump too. Our industry group suggested that BEVs should have a lower rate than proposed. We proposed $60/1000km, based on the fact that at $76/1000km BEVs pay more in road tax than very efficient petrol and petrol hybrid vehicles, but this was not successful – from 1 April this year, EVs pay exactly the same RUC rate as diesel vehicles.
Read the motor vehicle industry submission on RUC rates for PHEVs and BEVs
Submission on the March 2024 Draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport
2 April 2024
The AA agrees with the focus on reforming the transport funding system in this GPS. The existing system wasn’t designed for the scale and range of investment it’s now trying to cover. In addition, we don’t think the current three-year National Land Transport Programme (NLTP) timeframe works well for long-term infrastructure planning.
We welcome the priority being given to maintenance and resilience of the road network. We want to see adequate pavement restoration and value-for-money.
We also support the other strategic priorities but note there’s a very ambitious work programme which will require robust and realistic setting of priorities.
The AA supports investment in public transport, including some subsidisation from road users reflecting the benefits in terms of reduced road congestion, but investment has to go into affordable and deliverable initiatives.
The AA agrees that a new strategic approach is needed to road safety that has more recognition of the role of safe drivers, in addition to road and vehicle conditions and appropriate speeds. As part of this we welcome the renewed interest in improving policing of drunk and drugged drivers.
Download the AA’s submission on the March 2024 Draft GPS on Land Transport