Campaigners trying to change the criteria for exemptions from the congestion charge have claimed victory after London’s mayor and Transport for London (TfL) agreed to a review.

The campaigners say that the rules for congestion charges have not kept up with improvements in car technology since the charge was launched in 2003, and argue that the charge should be based on the level of emissions rather than on technology. Their argument is backed up by the fact that there are now some 20 conventional car models that emit the same or less carbon than other models currently exempt (such as the second generation Toyota Prius).

TfL will announce the findings of its review later this year, and if it finds in favour of the change, thousands of petrol and diesel-driven cars will be able to enter London’s charging zone for free. Currently there are 14,170 drivers of one of the 20 non-hybrid cars emitting less than 105g/km CO2 who have to pay the £8 charge, while drivers of hybrids and electric cars are exempt.

The unfairness of the current rules is highlighted by the fact that a 4 X 4 Lexus hybrid is exempt from the charge even though it emits 192g/km CO2, almost twice the amount of today’s most efficient models and considerably higher than the national average. Also exempt is another Lexus hybrid, the LS 600h, which emits 219g/km CO2.

Critics of the proposed change, including the Campaign for Better Transport, argue that the mayor should not accept it, since the point of the congestion charge zone is not so much to reduce pollution (though of course that would be welcomed as a by-product) as to reduce the number of cars coming in to central London. Making more cars exempt from the charge would only increase levels of congestion and traffic.

Furthermore, there are concerns that the capital’s bad air quality would be made worse if more low-CO2 cars were allowed into the zone for free. In particular, concerns centre around diesel engines – which the large majority of non-hybrid cars with low emissions have – as they emit other kinds of air pollutants which are known to be harmful.

Public support for a change in the rules has not been overwhelming, with only half of those taking part in an online survey by What Car? magazine agreeing that exemptions should be based on carbon emissions, not technology.

For press enquiries, please contact Peter Cooper on 020 7183 7247
Email: info@247parking.com
Web: www.247parking.com

News provided by 24 7 Parking Ltd, a leading marketing services provider to the car parking industry in the UK, and a leading de facto marketplace for buyers and sellers, or lessees and lessors, of car parking spaces.

24 7 Parking carries out daily surveys of the national media to provide up-to-date news and commentary on UK transport.