Congestion Charge? (London)

Introduced in February 2003, the congestion charge introduced a fee for most motorist who entered central London during the working week. The fee was initially £5 which was then subsequently raised on in July 2005 to £8. The congestion charge only effects central parts of London, where traffic has come to a standstill over a number of years. Traffic problems were beginning to have drastic effects on the lives of drivers, productivity of business and ease of tourists. Though many were wary of the financial implications of the congestion charge, there is little doubt that many wanted some sort of solution to the traffic chaos from Mondays to Fridays. London was ...

I do not live in London, and so I am lucky enough that I do not have to pay the congestion chrage, however several members of my family do and so I have been reading up on it (at http://www.fpb.org - an extremely helpful website). The back story for anyone who isn't 100% sure what I am talking about is - On 17th February 2003, a congestion charge was introducted for vehicles entering the centre of London. The total cost of setting up this scheme was £250 million, which was predicted to pay for itself within three years. One week after the launch, Ken Livingstone said: "I can't conceive of any circumstances in the foreseeable future where we ...

Congestion charges were introduced by mayor of London Red Ken to reduce number of vehicles entering London. Any vehicle entering congestion zone has to pay a flat fee for a day to drive in central London. Around 2015 (eight years from now) people in most parts of the country will pay for miles they do. It will be called PAYD (pay as you drive) and motorists will pay for each mile they drive. Motorists in urban areas will pay more than motorists in the countryside. Road tax and fuel tax will be abolished, however majority of drivers will pay much more than they pay now. The government is not likely to fund the scheme because of cost. Instead private ...