Better cars, less oil mean fuel tax revenue will dry up  

The SMH has a look at the impact of peak oil on tax revenues - Better cars, less oil mean fuel tax revenue will dry up.

FUEL taxes will become an increasingly unreliable source of revenue for governments as the supply of oil diminishes and cars become more fuel-efficient, a report warns.

Transporting Australia's Future, to be published today by the Association of Consulting Engineers Australia, urges state and federal governments to raise revenue for transport infrastructure from new sources, including levies on employers and taxes on high-value land around transport hubs.

''Reliance on traditional fuel excise as the key revenue tool is internationally recognised as having limited longevity, with diminishing reserves and increased fuel efficiency curtailing revenues,'' the report says.

''An infrastructure funding regime based on fuel taxes has no sustainable future.''

The report says that while fares and tolls from transport users cover the ''aggregated costs'' of transport, governments treat these as taxes, going into general revenue. It says there is ''no accountability to transport users who are frustrated by inadequate reinvestment in transport''.