London Congestion Charge and ULEZ to Recommence

[markjay]

What do you count as a City Centre ? The Original CC Zone ? The North and South Circular is not my idea of a City Centre

I don't really know... it's more a matter of principle. Interestingly there are very few cars (apart for Buses and Taxis) in the City - I guess that's because there's no street parking at all (though there are some NCP car parks). I would probably start with restricting access to private cars to the area between Marylebone Road in the north and Piccadilly in the south, see how that goes. And by 'restricting', I mean banning, not just charging money for access. Busses and Black Cabs are fine, Uber will be a bit of an issue because people can register their cars as 'mini-cabs' to get around it (it only requires appropriate insurance and an additional MOT), so I suppose that having no Pay-and-Display parking other than loading/unloading might also help.

There would be a system to grant permits for tradesman, disabled, food deliveries etc.

The only issue I see is with private cars belonging to residents who live within the affected area. But I am assuming that some solution can be arranged for them.

 

[Darrell]

Extending congestion charge to North and South Circular roads is daylight robbery

Living in Mill Hill I’m in total agreement with you.

 

[Oli]

Only ever go into London for work occasionally, hate driving there and hate going there unless I have to, go there in my own time of my own free will,and endure the misery of driving there plus pay for the privilege?, no thanks Sadiq, while you may shout from the rooftops that it’s the greatest city in the world, a great many people think it’s an overpriced,crime ridden,dirty s**thole that they’d rather avoid.

 

[Gavnr]

Good thing I read this thread, checked my car and since putting a private plate on it has gone from compliant to non -compliant! I'm sure it will be fun getting TFL to sort this

 

[Dickster]

As a Londoner, and in spite of the personal inconvenience, I am in favour of banning private cars from city centres, starting with London.

I do not understand the obsession that the authorities seem to have with filling our cities with electric cars.

Admittedly, unlike ICE cars, EV's do not have a negative impact on air quality in cities, which is great, but they cause the same level of congestion as other cars, and the same level of risk to pedestrians.

So I have no idea why they are being encouraged with such vigor.

We have a Tesla at work, and it's a cheap as chips to run.... BIK, VED, Congestion Charge, Parking... all free or near-free.

To my mind this is a missed opportunity. Ther's no reason to use a car (EV or ICE) in central London.

Walk, Cycle, take a bus, train, or the Tube, take a black cab or an Uber. Why reward people for driving into central London with an EV?

I am in favour of pedestrianising places like Oxford St but how would people like me get supplies to my to/from my office in Nr Bond St if cars are banned from the city?

I have always been in favour of having staggered times for different forms of transport. Lorries for instance could be banned during rush hour.

And why have cars now been banned from using bus lanes at all times? So at 5am on Sunday morning cars can’t use bus lanes?l

Buses should also stay in their own lanes at all times - they are the most inefficient forms of transport imho.

 

[Dickster]

Only ever go into London for work occasionally, hate driving there and hate going there unless I have to, go there in my own time of my own free will,and endure the misery of driving there plus pay for the privilege?, no thanks Sadiq, while you may shout from the rooftops that it’s the greatest city in the world, a great many people think it’s an overpriced,crime ridden,dirty s**thole that they’d rather avoid.

That bloke is a bigger knob than Boris

 

[Darrell]

I have always been in favour of having staggered times for different forms of transport. Lorries for instance could be banned during rush hour.

How would work this say, for large city based construction jobs where muck-away lorries are coming to a job on turn-around from 7.45am onwards?

And what do you actually class as rush hour in one of the most congested cities in Europe? The roads are full 18 hrs a day.

 

[Dickster]

Mere detail but I think something is needed. And don’t get me started on the ridiculous amount of development going on in London - it’s one big bloody building site.

 

[Dickster]

I took my m/bike into London for the first time since COVID yesterday. At 6am the roads were already congested from Kent up to the Elephant. If all these people are driving to work in London where are they parking? That’s what I don’t get. And why not encourage people to get on to m/bikes?

 

[Darrell]

And don’t get me started on the ridiculous amount of development going on in London - it’s one big bloody building site.

And long may that reign.

 

[Darrell]

I took my m/bike into London for the first time since COVID yesterday. At 6am the roads were already congested from Kent up to the Elephant. If all these people are driving to work in London where are they parking? That’s what I don’t get. And why not encourage people to get on to m/bikes?

I’ve been cycling into and out of central London since the March lockdown and the roads have been busy since the end of April tbh.
The city is dead though.

 

[Dickster]

Odd that the roads are still busy - the West End is pretty quiet too.

 

[Dickster]

Our landlord has 3 out of his four London properties empty.

 

[Oli]

That bloke is a bigger knob than Boris

Given the 3 mayors we’ve had so far I think being a knob is a prerequisite for the role!.

 

[ab9758]

I've been prattling on about ULEZ (I live in Mayfair W1 - the heart of the zone). It's worked well for me as I've just sold my ULEZ exempt ML500 for £'000s more than I paid 3 years ago. Buyer adamant it had to be petrol.
Try selling any pre 2014 ML diesel today in the south-east.
And absolutely as predicted by greater minds on this forum,today's news story is about an increase of the ULEZ from £4,400 a year to £10,010 a year (plus congestion charge).
And as also pointed out, once the majority of diesels stop coming in, TfL won't remove the cameras and charging infrastructure. They'll assuredly target newer diesels and (at first) heavier polluting petrol. I think my order for a replacement ML63 had better be put on hold.

Londoners could face £27.50 daily congestion charge under TfL bailout
htc ps://mol.im/a/8866379

 

[Darrell]

Our landlord has 3 out of his four London properties empty.

He needs to find a decent firm to look after them then.

 

[neilrr]

Soho restaurants now face £100,000 bill to let people outside

Hospitality businesses have reacted angrily after it emerged they will be charged for al fresco dining.

metro.co.uk

Firms will have to pay a daily rate of £7 per square metre for the space they use outside when the current ‘al fresco’ scheme ends on October 31

 

[Screwdriver]

And a petition to protest the malignancy that is the expanded congestion charging zone. Once Khan goes, normalcy should resume.

We Can Make an Impact.

Petition the Extension of Congestion Charge

chng.it

 

[horatio]

Buyer adamant it had to be petrol.
Try selling any pre 2014 ML diesel today in the south-east.

Demand for old diseasels is strong. ML500’s are so rare that a niche of buyers can easily push prices through the roof.

Supply shortage fuels rise in used diesel car prices

Dealers are seeing diesel used car prices continue to rise due to a shortage of vehicles in the marketplace. In the seven days to 11 October demand for use

www.motortrader.com

I live on the edge of Herts/London and tbh I rarely drive inside the north circ, it’s a bloody nightmare and a last resort.

 

[Screwdriver]

London’s motorists paid £130m in Congestion Charge fines in 12 months

Transport for London also generated £52m in revenue from those paying on time.

www.shropshirestar.com

Khan's diabolical legacy. It's time for us to vote him out!