Comments on: London Congestion Charge A Shambles

By: Stein X Leikanger

Stein X Leikanger — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 22:28:23 +0000

It takes a year. When city toll rings are established around major metropolitan areas (and I pass one every day) it takes a year for peoples’ habits and expectations to accommodate to it.

During the course of that year, people reexamine their use of the car, consider what other kind of car to purchase when times come to trade in the one they have, and generally adapt and adopt.

It’s way too soon to tell as far as London is concerned — particularly as the Brits don’t really like being told what to do … but the traffic situation in London is so abominable that any improvement will be received with gratitude.

By: whatdoiknow1

whatdoiknow1 — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 20:56:51 +0000

You seem to be of the mistaken impression that all city transport policy is supposed to benefit drivers.

Very good point! When you have THOUSANDS of pedestrians crossing streets in every direction it is actually the relatively few cars (compared to the pedestrians)that are intefering with the flow of “people” traffic.

I was born and raised in NYC, yet for the majority of my life I lived in an area of NYC were NO commerical traffic was allowed. Plain and simple, No Trucks, Buses, or commerical vehicles of any kind unless they were there to deliver something or do work.

So as we can see there have always been traffic and vehicular restriction in New York. What is so different about restricting the types of vehicles that enter the most conjested parts of our cities?

By: Landcrusher

Landcrusher — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 19:15:39 +0000

I miss interpreted the percent of the charges as being paid by government employees instead of being paid to them. Come to think of it, that wouldn’t likely be possible. Still it would be funny.

By: postjosh

postjosh — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 19:10:08 +0000

gee, a newspaper owned by libertarian lunatic murdoch is reporting that congestion taxes suck. well, more buses and fewer cars sounds good to me. the point of a congestion tax isn’t to make things easier for car commuters, it’s to make a city more livable for its residents. please, please, bring a congestion tax to new york. and yes, i am a car owner.

By: yankinwaoz

yankinwaoz — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 18:52:34 +0000

When I was in London last June I noticed that the traffic in the Financial District was non-existent. It felt like a holiday down there. Perhaps the traffic has always been light down there. I dunno. Make the place seem kind of sterile and dead.

By: Eric_Stepans

Eric_Stepans — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:36:37 +0000

sitting@home stole my thunder. For some reason, politicians don’t seem to understand that a tool that works for one problem (congestion pricing to capture incremental trip costs) doesn’t mean it works for other problems (encouraging less fuel use).

Or maybe we’ve been addicted to massively-subsidized automotive transportation for so long that there are no good (AND politically-acceptable) solutions…

By: z31

z31 — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:30:22 +0000

A while back Jeremy Clarkson mentioned on Top Gear a number of high end cars being registered as taxis to get around the congestion charge as well.

By: allerton

allerton — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:07:22 +0000

I think both you and this article are being a little selective in interpreting the facts.

If you actually look at the numbers quoted you’ll find that traffic is still a little better than pre-CG levels. Given that this is true despite a big increase in the number of bus lanes, introducing more traffic lights and phasing the traffic lights in favour of pedestrians not cars, I’d say the congestion charge is having some benefits. You seem to be of the mistaken impression that all city transport policy is supposed to benefit drivers.

As for the money side of things, that does sound pretty questionable. The wonders of P3s strike again. However it is hardly a surprise that the RAC would claim that the sky is falling when you consider who pays their wages.

(Disclaimer: former Londoner, not living there anymore. Love driving, but always thought London could use less bloody cars.)

By: sitting@home

sitting@home — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:05:51 +0000

Shows what happens when you entangle congestion policy with fuel consumption policy. Now that California allows hybrids into the freeway carpool lanes, just about any SUV with two occupants has the right to flip off a single occupant Prius as being a minion of Big Oil.

By: Landcrusher

Landcrusher — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 16:34:18 +0000

Gotta love it. The folks trying to do the social engineering are completely resistent to it. Perhaps if they just fired all the social engineers they would stay home. The combination of less traffic with less hot air may solve the whole global warming issue once and for all.