The expansion of London’s Congestion Charge zone happens this month on the 19th February when the area including Belgravia, South Kensington, Chelsea, Bayswater and Notting Hill all come under the £8 a day blanket if you want to drive your vehicle into or through that part of town. It’ll be in operation from 7am-6pm, Mon-Fri, and there’s a 90% discount for residents, but the fact they have to pay anything just to drive to their home is nonsense to my mind.
A London borough that isn’t covered by the current congestion charge zone or upcoming extension is Greenwich, but the council are asking the Mayor to sort out some kind of charging scheme for them because they claim the town centre is getting too much traffic. I also heard on the news yesterday that they want to have a £2 toll on vehicles going through the Blackwall Tunnel. This links the north and south of the Thames in the area very close to the Millennium Dome and the next major crossing point is about 12 miles down river. Head west, up river and you’re into the congestion zone, so they’ve got drivers completely snookered and you will be paying to drive in more and more parts of the city.
Not to be out done there’s news that Tony Blair is ready to give the go ahead for national road pricing. Whether this is tolls or satellite tracking is unsure but its such a sure fire way to rake in money for the government its inevitable. You can definitely say the joy of motoring is a thing of the past in the UK.
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