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Road tax should be based on vehicle weight

Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai said yesterday that the government is studying options for allowing flexible road tax payment for motorists.

With the advancement of technology, vehicles’ movement can be tracked, so the lower the mileage, the lower the road tax.

He added that such a system could be studied by the Transport Ministry and implemented in future.

Meanwhile, I propose that current road tax rates that are based on engine capacity be replaced by vehicle weight.

Around 1970, rotary engine cars were on Malaysian roads when Asia Motors was selling Mazdas, and the road tax for those cars was lower because of their smaller capacity but powerful engines.

At the race track, these 1.2-litre rotary engines were classified together with 2.0-litre piston engines, much the same way as super or turbo-charged engines compete with naturally aspirated engines.

Today, many cars on the road are fitted with super or turbochargers that generate more than adequate horsepower from relatively small engines.

A large battery could also be fitted to complement the internal combustion engine to propel the car. These hybrid models are even cheaper than normal cars because of tax incentives.

It will not be long for more fully electric cars to be on our roads, and their performance can be truly electrifying, as their acceleration put many internal combustion engine cars to shame.

As it is not practical to charge road tax based on the engine’s cubic capacity (none for electric vehicles), it would also be unfair to base it on horsepower, which only indicates its full potential, and not its actual utilisation.

As such, road tax should be based on vehicle weight, and those who drive around in bulky Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs), Multi-purpose Vehicles (MPVs), pickups and vans should pay more than those in cars.

As for buses, it should be based on their weight without passengers, and maximum permissible weight for goods-carrying vehicles. Those caught overloading should be fined 10 times more than the road tax each time they are caught.

Such a road tax system is better than changing to one based solely on mileage, which is akin to paying a toll every time the car is used on the road.

And if there is technology to track the movement of vehicles on the road, there will be people smart enough to produce anti-detection kits and make a killing in the market.

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