London Mayor: "No More Congestion Charges"
Motorists in London had high hopes when they elected Boris Johnson as their mayor. The former Conservative party leader is a well-known gearhead, and even moonlights as an automotive journalist. And those hopes may just yet be vindicated, as Mayor Johnson begins rolling back the Congestion Charges instituted by his reviled predecessor "Red" Ken Livingstone.
For starters, Boris has stated publicly and on the record, "I am not going to be having any more congestion charges." Although he has not yet dismantled the entire system, the Mayor has indicated that he is considering canceling its most recent extension into the Kensington and Chelsea neighborhoods, narrowing down the zone to the downtown core between Buckingham Palace and Tower Bridge. At the same time, Johnson is launching a half-million-pound public consultation into the entire C-Zone network, while campaigning for a "modal shift towards bicycling and walking, not just in inner London but also in outer London." We hope to hear good things soon.
[Source: PistonHeads]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
John Johnson 4:56PM (7/02/2008)
That's really progressive, and I'm glad to hear it. I don't live in the UK or anything, never been there, but I understand how the system works. Getting rid of the congestion charge will cause more traffic, which in turn will cause more people to switch to more economical means of transportation.
It also means the British government can stop collecting so much money, I know they're planning on taking over the colonies again :/
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N 5:14PM (7/02/2008)
Good stuff Boris! Keep it up!!
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Dazza 5:30PM (7/02/2008)
2009 is a General Election year, and this is a typical electioneering move by the Tories. So, what will happen? More traffic --> more jams --> increased cost to the local economy --> less of the massive investment brought into London over the past ten years --> fewer new jobs --> less investment in the infrastructure. Fantastic, back to the good old days of Tory rule when London was about as modern as Venice.
Anyone who thinks that traffic gridlock will force many people to public transport is living in cloud-cuckooland.
Life as a gearhead is meant for the open road, not a congested city. Autoblog yet again talking out of their arses.
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jb 5:47PM (7/02/2008)
One step forward, two steps backwards....
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BlackCanary 6:12PM (7/02/2008)
Is not a congestion charge a very regressive tax? Seems to be a good idea if you are upper middle class and don't mind the added expense to limit congestion. I guess depends on your relative economic position to agree or disagree with the charge.
I cant see how eliminating the charge will increase public transportation use that is kind of the point of the charge/tax to begin with.
I know there has been many studies done in the US using London as the example to try and implement a similar program. I not sure but I think Manhattan has a congestion tax.
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Dazza 8:36PM (7/02/2008)
BlackCanary: you need to bear in mind that the US has 21 times the length of road network than the UK, yet only six times as many cars. Prior to the congestion charge, London traffic congestion gridlocked the city; I recall early one Tuesday afternoon it took me three hours to drive the 30 miles or so from central London to the M25 - and that was prior to rushhour.
Traffic congestion is such a burden to the local economy that it affects the prosperity of everyone, regardless of means.
The congestion charge is a tax, but road pricing is the only way to reduce traffic levels in urban areas when you have a nationwide traffic congestion problem which the UK has. Given that London has excellent bus, rail and underground (the world's largest) rail services, the congestion charge acts as a deterrent - if you use public transport, there's less tax revenue collected and the infrastructure is less congested to promote commercial growth.
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BlackCanary 10:33PM (7/02/2008)
I do not necessarily disagree. I am not really familiar enough with it to have a clear opinion. I can see some definite useful scenarios especially when the public transportation is as good as the system in London. I do disagree with the theory that removing the fee and thus increasing congestion will somehow be good by forcing people to use the public transportation. That theory is short of logical.
Ken 9:08PM (7/02/2008)
If I were rich, I would fully support the congestion charge. Less traffic, easier to drive in Central London.
Win-win, because the money would be immaterial.
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Hunter 10:04PM (7/02/2008)
London's problem is not too many cars, it simply doesn't have enough roads. There is this bizzarre mantra in the UK that if you build more roads, people will buy more cars and congestion will get worse. Why can't Brits see that this is clearly nonsense?
All London needs is elevated expressways over its arterial routes and cross city thoroughfares such as Oxford St. and Marylebone Road. Might as well run one along the length of the Thames for good measure.
London's existing streets are only good for journeys of a couple of miles or so. Everything else should be fed into motorways.
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Dazza 9:14AM (7/03/2008)
Hunter: many Government studies over the years have proved that the more roads you build, and the wider you build them, the more traffic it attracts. The M25 is a famous case in point - when completed in 1986 it was already well above its intended designed traffic levels. There have been two widening schemes since, and the congestion remains as bad.
London's problem - as with all urban areas in the UK - is too many cars. In the past fifteen years alone, the number of cars on British roads has risen by over 20%.
Hunter 10:21AM (7/03/2008)
Indeed, the number of cars has increased by 20%, but the number of roads has not: that's the cause of increased conjestion. The idea that people think "Oh look. A new road. I'll buy a car." is utterly ridiculous and could only come from a government study.
Re. the M25, would London's traffic be better if it had never been built? I remember the North Circular pre M25, and trust me that was a lot worse than the orbital is today.
If car sales have gone up 20% then the government now has at least 20% more road, petrol and car tax to spend on new roads! Where's the money going?
Mobius_1 10:12PM (7/02/2008)
Well, now he really is fulfilling part of his promise: "You'll be more likely to drive a BMW M3." Good for the wealthy people in London
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Dan 11:27PM (7/02/2008)
The problem is; that a congestion charge will practically only keep the lower class people off the roads. Where it is the upper class, and wealthier people who tend to drive bigger vehicles and not car pool that are the real cloggers.
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Martin 6:38AM (7/03/2008)
In the interview I saw with Boris it was quite clear that the original congestion charging zone (central london) will remain regardless but that the western extension is under consultation and he will act on the results of that consultation.
In other words - central london CC zone remains, western extension likely removed, no new zones added.
/bfg
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Roy 10:07AM (7/03/2008)
lame... this idiot also banned drinking on the tube.
Eric Elinow 12:09PM (8/22/2008)
The congestion charge needs to remain and other cities around the world need to implement this as well. I'm a car enthusiast and a retired Rally & Hillclimb Builder & Racer so my enjoyment of autos is without question. I do however realise that in cities more than anywhere else, people should be utilising non-destructive means of transportation, preferably walking and bicycling.
I live in a rural area and nothing is close but I still travel by bicycle. On a trip I took yesterday to my in-laws for dinner I could have driven the 32 km route but I chose to take my bicycle. It took twice as long but I felt refreshed when I arrived and used no fuel in doing so.
In big cities this ratio of bicycle time vs. automobile isn't as drastic. Ask any cyclists in NYC if they take any longer to get to work (or less) than the equivalent driver. You may be surprised at the answers.
And if you hate long commutes, maybe you should move closer to where everything is happening.
Eric
http://www.bucksbicycling.com
http://www.deverenigdestaten.com
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