London’s mayor, Boris Johnson, is proposing changes to the capital’s congestion charge which would make the scheme fairer for motorists. The changes would involve scrapping the £8 daily flat rate and having different rates depending on the time of day the motorist enters the zone, as well as setting up a billing system to make it easier to pay the charge.

While he has made clear his intention to keep the congestion charge, which he believes plays a crucial role in reducing the number of cars in central London, Mr. Johnson had talked of making changes to the scheme since taking office, with the introduction of variable rates being an option from the start. He is also keen on introducing an account-based billing system, and has asked Transport for London (TfL) to make the changes needed to put this in place as soon as possible.

Drivers entering the congestion zone at any time between 7am and 6pm on weekdays currently pay a fixed rate of £8 on the day of travel, or £10 the day after travel. The proposed changes would see motorists paying more to enter the central zone during peak hours and less at other times of the day. This system is based on the one used in Stockholm, and IBM, the company that set up the Swedish system, will take over the contract for congestion charging in London in November.

The proposal to have varying charges was welcomed by the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry, whose chief executive Colin Stanbridge said: “These changes, if implemented, would make the c-charge fairer, flexible and more business friendly” and would also be good for business, as cheaper charges between rush hours “would attract more shoppers into London and provide a vital life line to our retailers”.
 
However,critics of the proposal, including the Green party, pointed out that London’s rush hour is ongoing throughout the day, therefore having varying charges would make little sense – it would simply encourage more cars into the city centre, leading to an inevitable increase in traffic and pollution.

A Labour transport spokesperson on the London assembly, Val Shawcross, warned that a price cut in the charge “would be a dangerous green light for more cars to come in and clog up central London”. He berated the mayor’s vision for London as “developing into ‘motorist first, everything else second’.”

Whatever the pro’s and con’s of the mayor’s proposal, there is clearly a pressing need to tackle the capital’s traffic problems, especially as recent research has shown that congestion in the central zone has risen back to pre-congestion charge levels. Nevertheless, TfL says that congestion would be worse without the “sustained traffic reductions brought about by the charge”.
 
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