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MG MGA - UK road tax petition

The UK government is considering putting tracking devices in all vehicles and taxing them on miles travelled - a recent TV progeramme showed that a typical average person would be paying a lot more than road tax at present - If you object to this - sign the petition at

http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/traveltax/

For more info - see the thread on the MGB general bbs - cheers Cam
Cam Cunningham

I am surprised Cam, I didn't have you down as a sheep!

Placing tracking devices onto cars has major benefits to ALL law abiding individuals. We can instantly identify non taxed non insured, non tested unsafe cars using the road. We can monitor the movements of suspected terrorists and criminals, no need for high speed dangerous chases. The government (whichever one is in power) can target road tax at which ever group it deems needs penalising probably those who want to use congested roads.

I could go on and on stating the obvious benefits to us all. Thus one needs to ask the question, what is the motivation behind the people who choose to oppose this measure?
Bob (robert) yes I own an MG Dwarf!

Hi again Bob - baaaaa - yes I can see the benefits too - but as always there is a good reason and a real reason for doing something - I do suspect the real reason for a government wanting to do this. I don't think that we need to worry too much yet though as it will take years (and millions of ££) to implement it - this should've gone on the flame wars thread shouldn't it? - cheers Cam
Cam Cunningham

I think so :))))
Bob (robert) yes I own an MG Dwarf!

Please try and keep this on your side of the pond, sounds like something George Bush would love.
John H

Very interesting, but please keep it in flame wars.
wc wolcott

What are you guys worried about. After all, they are the government, and they are only trying to help you.

Jeff Schultz

Hey, i work for the Government! Our new motto here is "we are not happy until you are not happy"!
Mitch Smith

That's a really nice refreshing thought Mitch. Our government just sell us off down the river and charge everybody for the privilege...

I need my MGA; with no radio, no traffic master, no Sat Nav, no mobile phone, to get away from it all as regularly as possible. Then life returns to normality - except for the speed limits & bumps!

Pete
Pete Tipping

Cam
I have 2 cars, a tax exempt MG and an Audi A2 TDI.
Under the present system the Audis road tax due to its emissions and lightweight is only £50.00 per year!

The current system based on vehicle size/emissions is to me a fairer system than a tracked or mileage based system.
Perhaps the "Big Brother" tracking system wont apply to currently tax exempt cars and there will be a surge in demand for our cars from bank robbers and the like! Robert
R J Collier

Thanks for bringing such an idea to my attention, I will give this serious thought when I get my new job. Treble road tax for classics? there's a thought!


Vote for me

Gordon
Gordon Brown

Hmmmm ""Treble road tax for classics? there's a thought!""

Not wanting to display how pathetic a remark that was but with classic car taxation at £zero I make that 3 multiplied by 0 equals 0 so still free yipee.

Either an idiotic person in Britain or an American trouble causer?? now let me see?
Bob (robert) yes I own an MG Dwarf!

Don't rule out he could be a real politician,
Promises to give serious thought.
Eye to the main chance, his new job.
The stupidity of three times 0.

wins my vote
ross
R W McIntosh

For all the Yanks who have been following this thread and are thinking, "well, this ain't gonna happen here" read this clip from C-Net:
"The U.S. Department of Transportation has been handing millions of dollars to state governments for GPS-tracking pilot projects designed to track vehicles wherever they go. So far, Washington state and Oregon have received fat federal checks to figure out how to levy these mileage-based road user fees."

Yikes. Not even George Orwell would have believed it.


Frank Nocera

I wasn't aware some classics were zero road tax, nobody told me. Being a canny Scot I'll have to buy an old cars, maybe something decent like a TR2 or an Austin 7. Must go, my mate Tony next door has just arrived in Healey 3000 with a dog in the passenger seat or is it his wife? Job to tell from here.

Vote for me again (2 votes per person, thats how we got in!)

Gordon

Gordon Brown

LIAR!
You stopped the 25 year rule on zero tax.
Ddraig

You are all set, I signed the petition five times.

Kilgore Trout
K. Trout

Dd think that his last effort supports my theory 100percent, now let me see who could it be. Certainly aint a Brit!
Bob (robert) yes I own an MG Dwarf!

The possibilities of such a system are endless. If the GPS chips also record speed (and they can), a government computer can print out speeding tickets every week and mail 'em out. Or e-mail 'em. Or just deduct the amount from the good citizen's bank account. No more need for cops on the roadside with radar guns. Radar detectors will be obsolete as distributor points. No more stolen cars. It will be a LoJack or OnStar system for the masses. And of course it could be used to determine where any person (or at least their vehicle) is at any given time. No more wayward spouses! This thing sure could take the fun out of driving.
Frank Nocera

If they tried this in the US the first thing I would do would be to find a way to circumvent it out of principal. The last person in the world I want tracking me is the Federal government.
Darian Henderson

Darian, people are doing it. Check out the "Ringer" threads on M&S General. (1500s being sold as pre '75)
Ddraig

>If they tried this in the US the first thing I would do would be to find a
>way to circumvent it out of principal. The last person in the world I
>want tracking me is the Federal government.

Ah, but the cops with radar guns will be replaced by cops with devices which can tell if a vehicle is transmitting data or not. You simply won't be allowed on the road without it. And expect hefty fines plus jail time for violators. Believe it or not, late model vehicles already record this information, so transmitting it is just a small additional piece of equipment.
Del Rawlins

Believe it or not, tracking devices are currently in some products that we purchase at the store.
M Whitt

"Ah, but the cops with radar guns will be replaced by cops with devices which can tell if a vehicle is transmitting data or not. You simply won't be allowed on the road without it. And expect hefty fines plus jail time for violators. Believe it or not, late model vehicles already record this information, so transmitting it is just a small additional piece of equipment."

I hear you, but there's always a way. I'm not a very conspiratorial person, but I'm pretty confident that people who are would find one.

I actually knew, but forgot, about how some cars record this. Is it all cars? Not sure I want to buy one that does.
Darian Henderson

Big brother is watching! All our vehicle/driver info is available on computer, some number plate recognision camera's are already sited in the UK, have you seen the 'information' signs on the motorway, displaying distance and time to a junction further up the motorway, e.g distance to junction 15 M5 29 miles, time 26 mins, say it took you 20 mins (not me, yesterday on my way home from the Autosport show) this equals 87 mph average (again, not me yesterday) a camera could/will log this and the summons follows. We, the motorist will end up footing the bill for those who won't or can't pay. Before anybody harps on about speeding, do we all keep to the speed limit? No, even the local Vicar got caught by a camera! Proposed toll roads can do the same. 'Gordons' bit about road tax could happen, do you realise the amount of pollution that comes out of the back a our precious MGA's and all other classic/historic cars. Did you know that a lot of modern cars ECU's keep speed and distance data which can be accessed, transponders in cars will happen if not already happening.


Happy Days


Terry
Terry Drinkwater

This thread was discussed between 10/01/2007 and 14/01/2007

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