When will the road safety levy be introduced and how much?

• From 1 December 2007, vehicle registrations will include a road safety levy of $20 per annum ($12 per annum concession) for a period of five years.
• A concession rate of $12 per annum will apply for those people who are eligible to receive a concession on their registration, refer to vehicle registration concessions.
• The levy amount is fixed in legislation and cannot increase in the five years.

Who is required to pay the road safety levy?

• The levy is to apply to all registered vehicles with broad access to the road network. That is, only limited or restricted access vehicles will be excluded.  A list of vehicle registrations included and excluded from levy is shown below:

*Special Purpose Vehicle includes Work Vehicle.

**Conditional includes Restricted, Special Interest, Vintage & Street Rod.

Do I have to pay the road safety levy for each vehicle I  have registered in my name?

• The road safety levy must be paid for each eligible registered vehicle regardless of the operator.
•  If a person has multiple vehicles (including trailers and caravans) registered in their name, they must pay the road safety levy for each vehicle.

How the levy is to be shown on registration notices

• The road safety levy will be shown as a separate component of the total cost of registration.

Periodic registrations

• The levy is to be pro-rata for the period of registration.

Refunds

• There are to be no refunds of the levy.

Why is the Government introducing a road safety levy?

• The road safety levy is needed to fund key initiatives in the Tasmanian Road Safety Strategy 2007 ? 2016 (the Strategy).  The objective of the Strategy is to eliminate serious injuries and fatalities on Tasmanian roads in the long term.
• Road trauma is a significant issue in Tasmania.  Each year from 1996 to 2005, on average more than 48 people were killed and more than 470 admitted to hospital as a result of road crashes.
• The road safety levy is the best mechanism to ensure adequate funding to achieve the actions from the Strategy and reduce road trauma.
• New initiatives contained in the Strategy, such as improving road infrastructure, cannot be implemented without additional funding. Without the new funding big reductions in road trauma cannot be made.
• The road safety levy is a new fund that will be set aside and will only be able to be spent on improving road safety in accordance with the Strategy. This is an important opportunity to fund major changes to the roads and driving environment to ensure that if a motorist makes a mistake on the roads, death does not result.

What will the road safety levy be used for?

• The road safety levy will be used ONLY for reducing road trauma and improving road safety in accordance with the Strategy. It will be set aside in a separate Trust fund.
• The road safety levy will fund implementation of infrastructure improvements, safer travel speeds, improving the safety of young drivers and safer vehicles under the Government?s new road safety strategy.
• For further information on the initiatives described, refer to the Tasmanian Road Safety Strategy

Tasmanian Road Safety Strategy 2007-2016 

Tasmanian Road Safety Strategy Action Plan 2007/08 - 2009/10 

How will the community benefit from the introduction of the road safety levy?

•  Funding from the road safety levy will be used to make significant changes to the road environment, to young driver safety, to vehicle safety and to travel speeds. This will reduce the amount of deaths and serious injuries on our roads. Improving road safety has benefits for the whole community.
•  The funding will be used to make roads safer for all road users and all age groups. It will implement the new Tasmanian Road Safety Strategy 2007-2016 that aims for the eventual elimination of serious injuries and fatalities on Tasmanian roads.

How does the road safety levy relate to the changes to motor tax?

•  The Government has decided to stop paying a subsidy to oil companies for fuel, as it did not see any evidence that the Government subsidy was being passed on to motorists.
•  To ensure that the community receives the direct benefit of this Government funding, it has been decided to cut motor tax for car registration and stamp duty for heavy vehicles.
• There will be a 21 per cent reduction in the motor tax component of car registration fees. This is a reduction of at least $20, with larger reductions for larger cars.
•  Heavy vehicles will receive a reduction in duty payable on heavy vehicle transfers from 3 per cent to 1 per cent.
• The road safety levy is a separate pool of money that the Government will collect and set aside purely for the purposes of improving road safety in accordance with the Strategy. The motor tax cut is to directly benefit motorists from the rising costs of running their vehicles.

Why doesn't the Government just use the money from the petrol subsidy or motor tax revenue to pay for road safety?

• The road safety levy is a separate, new fund that, by law, will ONLY be spent on reducing road trauma and improving road safety in accordance with the Strategy. This separate Trust fund will guarantee five years of secure funding to improve road safety.
•  Motor tax revenue is directed into the Consolidated Revenue Fund. Applying the money from motor tax to road safety would not guarantee funding levels over a five-year period, as Consolidated Fund Revenues can be re-directed to any Government services or initiatives. On the other hand, levy money deposited into a Trust fund can only be spent on road safety and cannot be re-directed.
•  Using motor tax revenue from the Consolidated Fund would not allow those implementing the Strategy to plan the same level of long-term strategic and targeted initiatives. Nor would it foster the same level of accountability and transparency for the community.