Also discussed here: Spitscoren (English translation - how it works)
The carrot works more than the stick, so the saying goes. Today’s review article comes from Rotterdam in Holland where a system based on rewarding off peak use, instead of a congestion charge, has achieved modest results after three years. This may be the solution toward existing clogged roads which have been free of charges and where the imposition of a new toll would be very unpopular. It gives “going Dutch” a different meaning!
Key Quotes:
“Charging for something that was previously free is likely to cause consumers to think again about whether they want to “consume” the product, and as a result demand will decline…implementation of congestion charging remains difficult for many. The politics of doing so are by far the greatest barrier. Motorists so frequently don’t want to pay more, even if it is to mean a faster trip.”
“What about paying people not to drive on congested roads at congested times?..has been getting trialled, with considerable success, in the Netherlands for three years…pay every motorist that is part of the scheme, €5 every morning peak that the motorist does not use the road, and €1.50 for every evening peak.”
“It is called Spitscoren or profit from the peak”
“regular users of the highway were identified, by collecting number plate information to get those vehicles that travelled at peak times regularly. The owners of those vehicles were then approached.. the motorist receives the loan of a GPS enabled smartphone…to provide information on travel alternatives, and to enable the motorist to keep track of their trips (and credits for not travelling)”
“The key reward is based on a monthly balance, the amount of which depends on frequency of use. .. Part of the reward system is to get up to a 10 euro credit every month towards keeping the phone. After a year this credit provides a discount to buying the phone”
“The goal of the system was to reduce traffic levels by 5% in each direction, the result has been an 8% reduction. On average it has removed 750 vehicles from the road every peak period”
Related articles
- Congestion Pricing and Land-Use Planning (pollutionfree.wordpress.com)
- Why congestion pricing will always be unpopular (blogs.reuters.com)
- Opposition To Congestion Pricing Is Likely Completely Rational (eschatonblog.com)
- What does Traffic Congestion Cost us? (pollutionfree.wordpress.com)
- The Costs of Using Roads (pollutionfree.wordpress.com)
- NYU study finds congestion pricing works best when partnered with land-use planning (eurekalert.org)
- State Study Shows Congestion Pricing Works (seattletransitblog.com)
- Congestion charge 'would fail' (autonetinsurance.co.uk)
- Getting People out of Cars- What does it Take? (pollutionfree.wordpress.com)
- Transit Subsidies (eschatonblog.com)
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