Feb 19th sees the congestion charge extending west to Bayswater, Notting Hill, North and South Kensington, High Street Kensington, Knightsbridge, Chelsea, Belgravia and Pimlico.
The Mayor has said that since the introduction of the original congestion zone, traffic entering central London during the charging hours has been cut by around 20%. TFL expects a 10-15% reduction in traffic in the new zone, reducing congestion by around 15%.
But many in the new zone reject these claims and say it will actually penalise those who can not afford it. Around 55,000 vehicle owners are included in the new zone - they will receive a 90% discount on the fee, some believe this will lead to more congestion in Central London as those from the new zone return to their cars to commute.
As well as extending the zone west the hours it operates will change, it will now end 30 minutes earlier at 6pm.
On Saturday, up to 50 cars took part in a protest organised by the West London Residents Association - they believe the charge will damage their businesses and cost residents hundreds of pounds a year.
Transport for London on the other hand claims that the Congestion Charge has helped fight pollution, reduce road accidents, and increased the number of cyclists and bikers, as well as turning more and more people to public transport.
TFL's director of congestion charging Malcom Murray-Clark said, "London still has significant congestion problems.
"Surveys indicate that of all areas adjacent to the zone, congestion is most intense in the west where there are sever delays through the working day".
Whilst TFL have spent a lot of time assessing the impact on cyclists and public transport no thought appears to have been put into the inevitable increase in bikers. As people turn from their cars and look for alternatives, poorly or little trained riders will seek scooters and other small powered machines to avoid the charge. We already know our bike bays are rammed to the hilt - can they take another scooter explosion this summer?
More novice riders on the road will lead to more accidents, TFL needs to think about it's policy on access to bus lanes for bikers as well as how it plans to tackle this issue.
Related News
Related Articles
