The debate about urban growth agreements and toll collection continues steadily in all the larger Norwegian cities, including in Skien.
I register that FrP wants an agreement without barriers. Yes, it follows Anders Lange’s spirit of “strong reductions in taxes, fees and public intervention”.
However, I am used to the fact that you have to give to get. However, it can be done more fairly than it is today, where it is mostly only on the roads from the south that tolls are collected.
As the electric car fleet increases, passenger car traffic also increases, which is completely contrary to the intention of the city package, and the idea of a better city to live in.
We should not abandon the idea of reducing the number of fossil fuel-powered vehicles, but, instead of setting up more toll stations and increasing rates, we should switch to road pricing, also called road use tax.
A concept selection study was carried out in 2022. The timetable is quality assured and suggests a start-up in 2026 at the earliest.
In practice, road pricing means that you pay a fee in relation to where, how much and at what times you use the road. Such a system will feel fair and also follows the principle that it is the polluter who must pay.
I don’t see any obstacles to starting the implementation of such a road pricing project in Skien, but it requires that we have politicians with enough “balls” to exercise politics for the benefit of the citizens, instead of arguing about whether mayors in cardboard boxes have the opportunity to participate at events or not.
