Motorists are to be charged £5 a day to bring their cars into the centre of London under new transport plans unveiled today by the city’s mayor Ken Livingstone. He hopes to bring in a daily congestion charge by 2003.
The aim of the strategy is to cut congestion by up to 15%, but opponents say the plans are unworkable.
Charges will apply on weekdays between 7am and 7pm and will be enforced by digital cameras able to read vehicle registration marks.
Drivers will pay on the day, or in advance through garages, newsagents and shops, by post, telephone, or the internet. Evaders face a £100 fine.
Motorcyclists, minicabs, school buses and public transport will all be exempt.
Around one million people work in central London and about one in seven commutes by car. At peak times it is estimated that more than 50,000 vehicles an hour enter the city centre.
The scheme aims to raise around £200m a year, much of which will be pumped back into improving transport in the capital.
The report on which the strategy is based warns that a major programme of road building to accommodate more car numbers would be too expensive and harm the environment. “It is impossible, either financially or in terms of environmental consequences, to develop transport to, from and within central London substantially on the basis of the private car,” the mayor’s strategy report said.
The London scheme is likely to be watched closely by local authorities around the country.
In March, an Institution of Civil Engineers survey of 82 authorities found that just 6% were in support of congestion charges, with 8% backing fees for parking at work.
EGi News 10/07/01
