Comments on: ERP, Part 2 http://rot.blogsome.com/2008/06/22/erp-part-2/ All is not well beneath the shiny surface. Thu, 17 Dec 2009 11:58:19 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=1.5.1-alpha by: twasher http://rot.blogsome.com/2008/06/22/erp-part-2/#comment-84 Mon, 23 Jun 2008 15:41:10 +0100 http://rot.blogsome.com/2008/06/22/erp-part-2/#comment-84 I think that there should be no COE. Taxes should be on usage and not ownership. Get rid of COE and shift it all to petrol taxes and ERP. Of course, in the absence of other taxes, COE is better than nothing (otherwise the nation will be in permanent gridlock), but there is nothing administratively difficult about raising petrol taxes and ERP, so why not. Yeah, it's politically unpopular, but if there's any benefit to living under a benevolent dictatorship, surely it's the possibility of the dictators implementing good policies that are wrongly detested by the common man. I think that there should be no COE. Taxes should be on usage and not ownership. Get rid of COE and shift it all to petrol taxes and ERP.

Of course, in the absence of other taxes, COE is better than nothing (otherwise the nation will be in permanent gridlock), but there is nothing administratively difficult about raising petrol taxes and ERP, so why not. Yeah, it’s politically unpopular, but if there’s any benefit to living under a benevolent dictatorship, surely it’s the possibility of the dictators implementing good policies that are wrongly detested by the common man.

]]> by: CS http://rot.blogsome.com/2008/06/22/erp-part-2/#comment-83 Mon, 23 Jun 2008 13:38:35 +0100 http://rot.blogsome.com/2008/06/22/erp-part-2/#comment-83 His critique on ERP is rather terrible. I agree with most of what you have said, but i think you miss out COE, which makes ERP less effective. Because people fork out so much money for their cars due to COE, they will want to maximize the usage of their cars and are less deterred by the ERP on their freedom of movement. That is to say, car driving is likely to be highly price inelastic to ERP. But, but, the good thing in Singapore is that since we can be so politically insensitive to high ERP, car owners will eventually feel the pinch. I literally count the number of times I get zapped as i drive into the CBD area. So it stil l works. His critique on ERP is rather terrible. I agree with most of what you have said, but i think you miss out COE, which makes ERP less effective. Because people fork out so much money for their cars due to COE, they will want to maximize the usage of their cars and are less deterred by the ERP on their freedom of movement. That is to say, car driving is likely to be highly price inelastic to ERP.

But, but, the good thing in Singapore is that since we can be so politically insensitive to high ERP, car owners will eventually feel the pinch. I literally count the number of times I get zapped as i drive into the CBD area. So it stil l works.

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