Transit funding as a tool to achieve goals

Transportation funding can be used as a tool to achieve the goal of increasing transit use and decreasing vehicle use, if it is designed to send market signals to customers that influence their travel choices.

Currently, BC Transit has a funding source that is directly linked to transportation behaviour for the Victoria regional transit system, which is the gas tax. The gas tax is added to the price of gasoline, which raises the cost for customers at the pump (3.50 cents dedicated motor fuel tax – BC Transit Victoria). Raising the cost of gasoline tends to reduce consumer use, encouraging people to use alternative transportation methods, such as transit. At the same time, the money collected from the gas tax goes directly to fund transit. In the rest of the province, BC Transit’s funding comes from property tax and provincial contributions from income taxes.

To consider: How can transit funding sources be designed to achieve the greatest positive influence on transportation behaviour?