Mmmmm, Parramatta road! Experience the freedom of travelling 10km/h, the tranquility of beeping horns and the lovely smell of exhaust emissions. Unfortunately, this environment can hit you just as hard physically as it does mentally. My lovely cousin who grew up in Merrylands Sydney has just had her first baby. Only days after her baby was born she received the devastating news that her Mum was diagnosed with cancer. One of the first things the doctors pointed out about this cancer was its prevalence with people who are exposed to vehicle emissions. For the large majority of her life my Aunty did not drive. However, Merrylands is located close the the M4, one of Sydney’s main roads starting near Sydney University as Parramatta Rd, before connecitng up to the M4 that extends to the Blue Mountains. The best health policy is always one of prevention. We the people of Sydney will prevent these emission related diseases from occuring in the future.
So what is a Pigouvian subsidy I hear you ask? Well, it is one that is created under the business case that the money put forward from the subsidy will offset other costs from the government. In doing so it will create a happy, healthier society without costing the government any extra money. This is not a world of imagination! This is the very reason why the government exists, to introduce simple funding mechanisms to eliminate market failures. In the case of electric vehicles, they offset the health care costs from emission associated diseases and reallocate this funding to subsidise electric vehicles. Something that will decrease the chance of people getting sick in the first place!
We will deliver a research project to the NSW government containing three sections:
1. A tank-to-wheel life-cycle assessment of Sydney’s vehicle emissions as an overall system.
2. A health report presenting relationship between quality of health and vehicle emissions throughout Sydney.
3. An analysis of the economic impacts of these health impacts that quantifies the level of subsidy the NSW Government should provide.
We will fund the research by: contracting with the government, creating partnerships with research organisations and by donations from vehicle manufacturers and the public. Together we can work together to achieve a healthier, safer city to live in.
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