<span class="" id="parent-fieldname-description"> The Moving People 2030 Taskforce has supported the prospect of investing the revenue generated by reintroducing CPI to the fuel excise into public transport. </span> <p>It’s a policy proposed by the Greens, in response to the Abbott Government’s proposal to invest the extra funding in roads alone. And it’s won the approval of the taskforce, which combines the ARA, the Bus Industry Confederation and a number of other transport and health organisations.</p><p>The Moving People Taskforce said late last week it believes that a Sustainable Transport Fund and a Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) for salary packaging public transport should be established with the revenue generated through the CPI increases to the fuel tax.</p><p>The Coalition announced in the Budget it would re-introduce biannual indexation to the fuel excise and expected to generate $2.3 billion over the forward estimates, with every dollar earmarked for roads.</p><p>Michael Apps, executive director of the Bus Industry Confederation and spokesperson for the taskforce, said he, like the Greens, was supportive of the fuel excise increase but could not support the revenue going wholly and solely to roads.</p><p>“The increase to the fuel excise offers the Abbott government a perfect opportunity to innovatively fund public transport in our major capital cities, whilst still leaving almost $45 billion in the Budget for roads,” Apps said.</p><p>“Increasing congestion and carbon emissions are putting too much pressure on existing infrastructure in our cities and the people living in them,” he continued. “Investment from all levels of government into public transport is paramount if Australians want to move freely and efficiently around the nation’s major cities in the future.</p><p>“Public transport provides for the masses so surely it is not too much to ask that a portion of revenue generated through the reintroduction of CPI to the fuel tax is dedicated to public transport.”</p><p>Apps referred to a backlog of infrastructure in Australia, and said innovative funding mechanisms will be crucial to solving this.</p><p>“World-class transport systems can be achieved in Australian cities if governments at all levels get smarter at funding public transport investment,” he said.</p><p>“Without long term planning and alternative revenue sources to fund or finance public transport and infrastructure investment, our cities and their transport systems will come to a standstill.”</p><p>Members of the Taskforce will be lodging submissions to the Senate Standing Committees on Economics with further recommendations this Friday.</p>
