Luxon wants EV drivers to pay RUC

National Party leader Christopher Luxon has suggested that if a National-led Government is elected in October the party will get EV drivers to pay road user charges (RUC).

Luxon reportedly promised that on TV3’s AM on June 29, adding it isn’t sustainable and that eventually insufficient money for roads would come from RUC as EV numbers increase, possibly within 20 years, his comments drawing a mix of criticism and praise.

He also said that if National is elected it would probably base EV RUC on distance travelled, adding RUC settings would need “revisiting” so that EVs are paying their fair share.

Talking a short time later on the same programme, Autolink Electric Vehicles managing director Henry Schmidt says very little RUC will come from EVs for some time because they are less that 2% (1.8%) of the national vehicle fleet.

Schmidt was on AM to mainly talk about the impact of fuel price rises from July 1 on EV sales which appear to have picked up recently.

Green Party transport spokesperson Julie Anne Genter has reportedly criticised National over Luxion’s RUC suggestion.

A RUC waiver for EV owners was extended to March next year by the Labour Government in 2021, the EV RUC exemption initially begun under National in 2009 to encourage EV uptake.

Genter reckons National’s EV RUC move might torpedo EV uptake which she says is seeing considerable progress and making a big difference to New Zealand’s climate targets.

Newshub says some social media responses have praised the RUC for EVs suggestion, adding one Twitter user says:  “If you use a road, you must pay a share of the costs.”

Others called the plan “commonsense” and “Excellent about time. “Everyone driving on the roads should pay their fair share of taxes”, Newshub reports.

The Clean Car scheme, which includes some changes to the Clean Car Discount (CCD) “feebates” from July 1, includes the EV RUC exemption.

National has criticised the scheme as “taxing people with utes… and actually subsiding wealthy Tesla drivers by giving them subsidies”, although Luxon’s family appeared to claim the CCD when they upgraded from a Model 3 to a Model Y Tesla – as did National MP Tama Potaka for a party-branded SUV, Newshub reports.