California’s road charge pilots are testing a per‑mile fee as a successor to the gas tax, aimed at keeping transportation funding stable as vehicles use less or no gasoline.[1][2][3][4]
Introduction: what the pilot is
- The Legislature passed SB 1077 (2014) directing the state to run a Road Charge Pilot Program to see if charging per mile driven (a “road charge” or RUC) could replace the fuel tax.[3][5][1]
- The main 2017 pilot enrolled over 5,000 vehicles statewide for nine months (July 2016–March 2017), logging more than 37 million miles and issuing mock invoices; participants did not pay real money. ⭐ [2][5][1][3]
- A second wave under SB 339 (2021), the Road Charge Collection Pilot, now tests actual payments and different ways to collect the charge (at the pump, at EV chargers, via usage‑based insurance, fleets, etc.). ⭐ [4][6][7][8]
Why California is contemplating a road charge
Policy design: how the pilot works
2017 Road Charge Pilot (SB 1077)
SB 339 Road Charge Collection Pilot (current)
Key findings from the pilot work so far
From the 2017 pilot (Caltrans/CalSTA final report and summary)
From SB 339 interim report and follow‑on demonstrations
Why these findings matter
- Revenue sustainability: The pilots give California hard evidence that a mileage‑based user fee can replace or supplement fuel taxes as EV penetration rises, avoiding a transportation funding cliff driven by its own climate policies.[9][3][4]
- Design choices and equity: By testing rate structures (flat vs. mpg‑adjusted) and collection methods, the state gets empirical input on who pays more or less under each design and how that interacts with rural drivers, low‑income households, and ZEV uptake. ⭐[11][12][4]
- Privacy and politics: The 2017 data showing broad satisfaction and high willingness to participate, especially when non‑GPS options are available, give legislators cover against “surveillance tax” critiques and point to privacy‑preserving design paths. ⭐ [3][13][2]
- Institutional path‑dependence: SB 339 and the demonstrations show that leveraging existing billing and regulatory systems (DMV, pumps, chargers, insurers, fleets) can keep administrative costs lower and make a potential transition more realistic.[11][6][4]
In practical terms, the road charge pilots are setting the technical, legal, and political groundwork for California’s next‑generation road‑funding model, which will increasingly matter as gas‑tax revenue declines and debates over who pays for roads intensify.[8][9][3][4]