TFL to extend Congestion Charge Zone...?!

[Turfy]

In plans suggested to TFL, the government suggests they extend the current Congestion Charge Zone to the North & South Circular!! (To match the 2021 Low Emission Zone).

£15/day/24/7/365 to drive into...



All so that TFL can have access to a £1bn government bailout...

Would they dare???

https://news.sky.com/story/government-offers-trans...

Edited by Turfy on Friday 16th October 08:12

[BlackLabel]

A few days ago the Tory mayoral candidate was moaning about the c-charge being bad for business, yet now this. Although something tells me that it won’t take much convincing for Mayor Khan to accept the proposals.

[vixen1700]

Saw this on the news last night and it said Kahn has no plans for this at the moment. Which means it's coming.

[Jamescrs]

Turfy said:

Would they dare???

Why would they not dare is the question? Sure people will moan and complain about it for a bit but then they will just carry on anyway. it's not like people will suddenly stop travelling into London in great numbers

[Hoofy]

I think at some point it will extend even more than the map and the same goes for other cities as people decide that the air quality needs dealing with.

I'm considering a V8 as my next purchase because at some point, I will not be able to own one as I live inside the M25.

[valiant]

vixen1700 said:

Saw this on the news last night and it said Kahn has no plans for this at the moment. Which means it's coming.

Kahn is pushing back heavily on this as is his Tory Mayoral rival, Shaun Bailey.

HMG is playing politics with this proposal pure and simple. It has nothing to do with finding a long term plan to fund TfL (which, by the way, has more journeys made on its services than the rest of the UK combined) and more to do with getting one over the Labour Mayor.

[Jamescrs]

Hoofy said:

I think at some point it will extend even more than the map and the same goes for other cities as people decide that the air quality needs dealing with.

I'm considering a V8 as my next purchase because at some point, I will not be able to own one as I live inside the M25.

I can already see plans to bring it in for Leeds where I live, they are initially doing it saying it is for commercial vehicles and public transport but it's quite clear that eventually when they have that established and people get used to that they will start on private motorists too.

[vixen1700]

Hoofy said:

I'm considering a V8 as my next purchase because at some point, I will not be able to own one as I live inside the M25.

Feel like a leper with mine in London.

[CourtAgain]

vixen1700 said:

Saw this on the news last night and it said Kahn has no plans for this at the moment. Which means it's coming.

I think those who live in the current charge zone have to pay something daily (I dread to think what that is and how much). I'm not looking forward to this at all as I now live in the new zone.

This is definitely going ahead as poor Sadiq is strapped for cash having burned through a billion since the last bailout in April. He doesn't know where the next Range Rover Vogue is coming from

Perhaps this is what's causing Shmee and the others to gather up all their 'garages' and flee to locations outside London, or at least outside this new Congestion Charge zone. STG's new Brentford base is outside of the A406/A205 boundary so he's fine (but will just have to deal with the area's rampant car crime and inefficient police )

Edited by CourtAgain on Friday 16th October 11:49

[valiant]

CourtAgain said:

vixen1700 said:

Saw this on the news last night and it said Kahn has no plans for this at the moment. Which means it's coming.

I think those who live in the current charge zone have to pay something daily (I dread to think what that is and how much). I'm not looking forward to this at all as I now live in the new zone.

This is definitely going ahead as poor Sadiq is strapped for cash having burned through a billion since the last bailout in April. He doesn't know where the next Range Rover Vogue is coming from

Remember, under proposed changes, you’ll be paying ULEZ charge (if applicable) AND congestion charge - a double whammy for many.

TfL costs about £600m a month to run - a Range Rover won’t make much of a dent in that...

[anonymous-user]

I would bet that many people unfamiliar with London would be surprised how small the current CC zone is.

[vixen1700]

valiant said:

Remember, under proposed changes, you’ll be paying ULEZ charge (if applicable) AND congestion charge - a double whammy for many.

Yep, £27.50 just to drive a mile and a half OUT of London to Redbridge in my weekend car and £15 if I want to take my 87 year old mother shopping up the road in a ULEZ compliant car.

Might flog the pair and get an exempt '60s V8 Mustang.

[Pothole]

Jamescrs said:

Hoofy said:

I think at some point it will extend even more than the map and the same goes for other cities as people decide that the air quality needs dealing with.

I'm considering a V8 as my next purchase because at some point, I will not be able to own one as I live inside the M25.

I can already see plans to bring it in for Leeds where I live, they are initially doing it saying it is for commercial vehicles and public transport but it's quite clear that eventually when they have that established and people get used to that they will start on private motorists too.

Really?

Plans to introduce a Clean Air Zone in Leeds are set to be scrapped by the city council.

The much-delayed £29m scheme (CAZ) was paused in August due to unexpectedly positive air quality levels.

It would have seen higher-polluting lorries, taxis and buses charged a fee for entering the city centre and other parts of the city.

A council report has stated the zone, originally due to be introduced in January, was "no longer required".

It was the subject of a joint review with government to see if it was still needed to meet legal limits of air quality.

Polly Cook, the council's chief officer for air quality, said: "If traffic levels returned to pre-Covid levels, we would still not exceed legal limits."

A £6m camera system had already been installed to monitor the CAZ, with about 300 cameras placed at more than 100 junctions.

Private car owners and motorcycles would have been exempt from the scheme.

Edited by Pothole on Friday 16th October 13:23

[Hoofy]

Jamescrs said:

Hoofy said:

I think at some point it will extend even more than the map and the same goes for other cities as people decide that the air quality needs dealing with.

I'm considering a V8 as my next purchase because at some point, I will not be able to own one as I live inside the M25.

I can already see plans to bring it in for Leeds where I live, they are initially doing it saying it is for commercial vehicles and public transport but it's quite clear that eventually when they have that established and people get used to that they will start on private motorists too.

Yep! I'd put money on it!

[Hoofy]

vixen1700 said:

Hoofy said:

I'm considering a V8 as my next purchase because at some point, I will not be able to own one as I live inside the M25.

Feel like a leper with mine in London.

Are people making comments?

[NomduJour]

Political manoeuvring.

[Ian Geary]

So to be clear, this potential extension is a demand by the Conservative government, as part of another support package to TfL.

I can smell politics here:

- Khan is saying no, as he knows he will get crucified in the polls

- the Tory mayoral candidate is trying to distract what his party is doing by blaming Khan of poor Tfl financial management (presumably someone will point out to him at some point key workers needed tfl to be open whilst ticket numbers have plummeted, or that playing politics with covid is not a long run success strategy)

- the govt have bailed out private rail operators with no strings attached (though they don't really have the same strings tbh)

- khan has the nuclear button of just switching off TfL. Personally he would go up in my estimation a lot of he did this, but then I don't rely on TfL to earn my wage. Let's hope he uses it to its best advantage.

The UK is very London centric, but then just follow the money...

I don't think the burden of keeping the capital's public transport system running should fall onto inner London drivers.

[Venisonpie]

valiant said:

Kahn is pushing back heavily on this as is his Tory Mayoral rival, Shaun Bailey.

HMG is playing politics with this proposal pure and simple. It has nothing to do with finding a long term plan to fund TfL (which, by the way, has more journeys made on its services than the rest of the UK combined) and more to do with getting one over the Labour Mayor.

This. In normal times TFL is the biggest area of influence the mayor has in politics and it's bankrupt. Given the capital's propensity to vote Labour it's a serious area for gamesmanship.

If he agrees and gets the bailout he'll get blamed for it and weaken the party position. If he doesn't and the govt insist on full or more control of TFL the mayoral position becomes less relevant.

Ultimately the govt would like to privatise TFL and let them have the problem. This is an opportunity to start that process.

Edited by Venisonpie on Friday 16th October 13:53

[JagLover]

Ian Geary said:

I don't think the burden of keeping the capital's public transport system running should fall onto inner London drivers.

No but it is not entirely clear why the rest of the country should pay to keep TFL the exact same size as it is now if there is going to be a permanent reduction in travellers.

As for the proposed extension of the zone my parents live within the new boundary so very much opposed.

[NomduJour]

Venisonpie said:

the mayoral position becomes less relevant

Can it get less relevant? Get rid and appoint a Minister for London.