I agree with the author that traffic congestion is a challenge, and one we need to rise to. However, the imposition of cost upon indivuals can not occur until there is a viable alternative method for travel.

Public transport for distances beyond the inner city is a joke in both Sydney and Melbourne. In Perth, the system is more reliable, but due to its size, does not operate frequently or into the evening. Even if public transportation is avaiable, such as in outer Sydney, the travel times, reliability and facilities are woeful.

Similarly, bicycle and pedestrian infastructure is defitent for people living closer to work.

By all means there should be, in the future, a mechanism for pushing people away from their cars. But it can only be implemented when there are sufficient viable alternatives for transportation.

I recently travelled on public transport in the peak hour.
The train and the busses were absolutely packed.
The trains have double deck carriages so no improvement possible there.

So even if we can get people out of their cars how will they get to work ?
Rather than tax street space we should implement petrol rationing.
Australian oil production has fallen very steeply and will reduce to
below 50% of our usage. We cannot afford the import bill.
So issue everyone who owns a car the Access card with an annual
allowance of petrol. When you buy petrol the card is swiped and the
litres deducted from your account.

Someone who will not use the all allocation could sell it via the
system to someone who needs it.
Every year the amount you can use is reduced by the depletion of oil
production rate.

Most policies suggested by economists rely on prices to ration through price. Unfortunately prices fail to work very well at limiting something when we have an "abundance" of goods that are cheap and the alternatives are expensive in either money or time. We have to invent new strategies to make prices work better and to achieve our overall objectives.

A solution to the transport problem of reducing the overall transport needs of society is to put a tax on kilometers but to make the tax work not only by sending a price signal but improving how we distribute and use the tax.

We do it by giving the tax to those who travel less and requiring them to spend the money on things that will reduce the need to travel or by making what we do more effective - like financing car pooling systems to fill cars with more people - or purchasing bicycles, or other ways of moving people with less energy or in ways to increase "work from home", or ....

See a suggestion for a community owned organisation to reduce the consumption of water at http://cscoxk.wordpress.com/2007/03/14/water-rewards-pilot-project/

The same approach can be used to reduce kilometers.

As I said above we can't afford what we will have to pay to import
crude oil. In a few years we will be importing 75% of our oil usage
which will be costing about $48,000,000 a DAY !

How much better to reduce car travel, CO2 and money by rationing petrol
to an amount we can afford.
Why else do you think the government is offering $2000 for every car
converted to LPG ? Ever seen the treasurer give money away like that
for anything before this ?