ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Research Approach
To build the recommendations and resources in this publication, the research team studied RUC programs throughout the United States as well as those in other parts of the world. The research included evaluations of programs at all stages of RUC, including those that are just beginning to explore RUC, programs that have completed one or more RUC pilots, and states that are looking to expand implemented RUC programs.
We identified successes and challenges from existing and emerging RUC programs to aid states in their quest to find sustainable transportation funding.
Developing the Building Blocks: To develop the Building Blocks for the RUC Guide, the team studied the approaches taken by states and other jurisdictions in their path toward RUC research or implementation. We then distilled these approaches into distinct Building Blocks that demystify the process of building a RUC program.
The Building Blocks are classified into the four stages of RUC: Research and Planning, Setup, Ongoing Operations, and Transitioning and Growing. While each Building Block can be used on its own, RUC programs across the country demonstrate that the Building Blocks are most effective when used in concert with one another. When combined, the Building Blocks help lay a solid foundation for starting, implementing, or growing a RUC program.
Researching the RUC Considerations: The RUC considerations included in the RUC Guide are based on research that explores the various political, sociodemographic, geographic, mobility, and economic characteristics of states and how those characteristics impact the various RUC implementation strategies and options.
This research also supported the development of the Lead RUC Agency Self-Assessment Tool by gathering several important characteristics into a manageable typology, which will allow states to evaluate their own readiness to explore and implement RUC.
In every state, existing initiatives, programs, travel patterns, and systems provide insight into considerations and implementation steps that will be necessary for a RUC program. The project team researched all 50 states and Washington, D.C., to assess a range of dimensions and questions that should be considered when building a RUC program.
Building the Challenges and Strategies: While the studies, pilots, and active programs carried out in other states have shown that RUC is a feasible and desirable alternative to the gas tax, transitioning to a fully realized RUC is not smooth or easy since there are technological, financial, legal, and practical hurdles to clear. In the research, we found that the challenges and strategies for overcoming them can be divided into three categories: analytical challenges, design challenges, and policy choices.
The proposed strategies are not mutually exclusive but are rather complementary, and it may be helpful to engage several or all strategies to overcome the challenge in a given state. These challenges and strategies should not be considered as a one-size-fits-all solution. In fact, the states that have begun to study or implement RUC have each taken a unique approach to identifying and overcoming challenges. Additionally, some strategies may need to be implemented during multiple phases, activities, or building blocks. Importantly, these challenges and strategies may also need to be addressed separately for commercial and noncommercial vehicles.
Global Road Pricing
The following document is a research deliverable, which can be downloaded as a PDF. While RUC pilots and programs are underway throughout the U.S. and around the world, there has not been a program that has universally implemented a mileage-based fee across all vehicles. Existing programs and systems in related fields can provide insight into a range of considerations and implementation steps that will be necessary to transition to a fully actualized RUC program. This document reviews programs in the following areas to identify lessons learned that may be applied to RUC: transportation pricing, utilities, general taxation, and tax- and transportation-related communication.
Literature Review and Best Practices
The following document is a research deliverable. This additional resource can be downloaded as a PDF. This review summarizes the literature and best practices on RUC. The review covers hundreds of technical papers and articles on RUC from online resources such as the Mineta Transportation Institute’s Mileage Fee Research and Information Directory (MFRID), obscure data sources, and interviews with knowledgeable subject matter experts. The project team has organized all existing information in a manner accessible to those interested in learning more about RUC by topic:
- Selecting Mileage Reporting Methods/Technologies
- Forecasting Costs and Revenue
- Evaluating Economic Impacts
- Understanding Distributional Impacts
- Analyzing Legal Issues and Vulnerabilities
- Designing Compliance and Enforcement Solutions
- Assessing Organizational Requirements
- Light, Heavy and Commercial Vehicles
- Designing Program Transition Strategy
- Communications
Each section begins with an introduction and description of the topic area, followed by a broad industry scan, and concludes with best practices. Each section includes a list of top references for the topic. The list of references is not meant to be exhaustive, but it serves as guide to the reader who would like to read more about the topic.
Glossary
| Term | Definition |
| Adjudication | In a RUC program, a process through which individuals or fleet managers can dispute charges and penalties enacted by the implementing jurisdiction. |
| Business rules document | A document that details the business rules for the system, including handling of money (real or mock), customer service, rules for enrollment, and statements. |
| Commercial account manager | An entity that manages customer accounts in a RUC program. Responsibilities may include managing accounts for various mileage reporting options, invoicing, payment, and certain aspects of enforcement, such as collecting late fees. |
| Communications professionals | Persons responsible for creating communications about RUC. |
| Concept of operations (ConOps) | A high-level document that describes how a system would work. |
| Electronic logging device | An onboard device that records vehicle miles traveled and location data for commercial vehicles. |
| End-to-end testing | Testing that assesses whether a process or system works from beginning to end. |
| Fuel/gas tax credit | A credit issued to users of a RUC system to account for fuel/gas tax payments already made. This credit is subtracted from the user’s total RUC payment to avoid double taxation or double payment. |
| Interface control document | A document detailing the interfaces between systems. |
| International Fuel Tax Agreement (IFTA) | An agreement between the 48 contiguous U.S. states and most Canadian provinces that simplifies the fuel tax reporting and payment process for commercial motor carriers who operate in more than one jurisdiction. The agreement allows commercial motor carriers to send fuel tax payments to their base jurisdiction, which then provides fuel tax payments to other jurisdictions proportionate to the number of miles the carrier has driven in those areas. The International Fuel Tax Association, Inc., also known as IFTA, administers the agreement. |
| International Registration Plan | A reciprocity agreement between the 48 contiguous U.S. states and most Canadian provinces that simplifies registration fees for commercial motor carriers who operate in more than one jurisdiction. The International Registration Plan allows commercial motor carriers to pay registration fees only in their base jurisdiction (as opposed to every jurisdiction in which they log miles). Their base jurisdiction then provides payments to other jurisdictions proportionate to the number of miles the carrier has driven in those jurisdictions. |
| Interstate commerce | The act of engaging in commerce—including transactions involving goods or services—across state lines. |
| Lead RUC agencies | Agencies leading RUC exploration in their state, jurisdiction, or organization. |
| Mileage reporting options | The various methods drivers can use to report mileage. Some options may include manual reporting options, like odometer readings; automatic but non-location-based reporting options, like electronic logging devices; or automatic, location-based options, like in-vehicle telematics. |
| Miles per gallon (MPG) | The number of miles a vehicle can travel on a gallon of fuel. |
| Motor carrier | A person or entity using vehicles to transport passengers or goods for compensation. |
| National Household Travel Survey | A survey conducted by the Federal Highway Administration to identify trends in personal and household travel behavior in the U.S. |
| On-Board Diagnostic II (OBD-II) device | A device that can plug into a vehicle and access its second-generation on-board diagnostic information—or OBD-II information—such as mileage or other data. |
| Ongoing Operations Stage | This stage begins when the RUC program goes live and continues thereafter. It involves live operations of the RUC system and includes all activities related to system operations, system reporting and evaluation, and enforcement. |
| Original equipment manufacturer | When referring to automotive vehicles or parts, the vehicle manufacturer that oversaw assembly of a vehicle; alternatively, may refer to the manufacturers of the equipment and parts that came with a vehicle when it was originally assembled. |
| Policymakers | Persons responsible for creating RUC policy or legislation. |
| Request for information (RFI) | A document used by a company or jurisdiction to request information about a product or service. |
| Request for proposals (RFP) | A document used by a company or jurisdiction to announce a project and to request proposals or bids from contractors to complete it. |
| Research and Planning Stage | This stage comprises all RUC activities prior to the passing of legislation; this includes research, planning, and outreach. Any pre-legislative pilot or demonstration is included in this stage, including technical design and operations work. Otherwise, the focus of this stage is developing policy, performing financial analyses, establishing communication and outreach activities, and supporting the passage of legislation. Many activities that begin in the research and planning stage continue in later stages. |
| Revenue neutral | An approach that sets the RUC at the rate needed to generate the same amount of revenue as the current fuel tax in a jurisdiction. |
| Road usage charge (RUC) | A transportation funding mechanism that uses a distance-based fee approach, allowing all users of the transportation system to help pay for it. |
| Road usage charge (RUC) program | A program of any kind, including voluntary or mandatory programs, and of any scope or size that a state has enacted to implement RUC. |
| Setup Stage | This stage begins with the passage of legislation to create a voluntary or mandatory RUC program, and it continues until the program starts live operations. Much of the activity in this stage involves specifying, procuring, and testing the RUC system. This stage also includes developing program communications, organizational design, and customer service activities to ensure a smooth program launch. Some activities that begin in this stage continue in later stages of the RUC program. |
| System requirement specification document | A document that describes the technical requirements outlining what the system should do—not how it should do it—and describes the minimum performance of the system. |
| Systems engineering processes | Processes used to design and plan for complex systems, like RUC programs, over their life cycle. May include development of a concept of operations, a system requirement specification document, an interface control document, and business rules. |
| Transitioning and Growing Stage | This stage occurs in parallel with other stages. Some transitioning and growing activities may begin as early as the research and planning or setup stage. These activities continue even as the program enters live operations as the RUC program expands. This stage involves all activities relating to planning for the growth of the RUC program and the transition from current funding mechanisms to RUC. Achieving transition and growth requires policy and operational planning, economic forecasting activities, and collaboration with other jurisdictions. |
| Transportation professionals | Researchers, agency staff, consultants, and other professionals exploring RUC. |
| Vehicle identification number (VIN) | A unique, 17-character string of letters and numbers assigned to each vehicle upon manufacture. |
| Vehicle miles traveled (VMT) | The total amount of miles a vehicle has traveled in a given period; may also refer to a tax or fee levied on users based on the amount of miles they have driven in a jurisdiction. |
Site Map
- What Is a Road Usage Charge, or RUC?
- Resources for RUC Users
RUC Users:
- Lead RUC Agencies
- Resources for Leading RUC in Your State
- Self-Assessment Part 1: RUC Stage
- Self-Assessment Part 2: RUC Considerations
- Self-Assessment Part 3: Challenges and Strategies
- Communications Professionals
- Communications for Every Stage of RUC
- RUC Communications Resources and Go-Bys
- Policymakers
- RUC Basics
- RUC Components
- Implementation Pathways
- Transportation Professionals
- Funding Needs
- RUC Framework
- Analysis to Support RUC
RUC Stages and Building Blocks:
- Research Approach
- Glossary