• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

MayorWatch

London News and Comment

  • NEWS
  • Twitter

Abolish the Congestion Charge

April 12, 2008 - Chris Prior

Chris Prior is standing for election to the London Assembly under the name ‘Abolish the Congestion Charge’ – a registered description of the Stop Congestion Charging Party.

“London needs better government. We must start by abolishing the congestion charge.

The congestion charge is a glaring example of bad government. Not only is it an unfair tax, it costs over £5.50 in every £8 to collect and it simply does not work.

Congestion and emissions are real problems that require real solutions rather than half baked schemes that don’t deliver.

Traffic speeds are slower than before the congestion charge was introduced, congestion has actually increased by nearly 25% on the edges of the Zone and there has been no measurable improvement in air quality.

The congestion charge relies on punishing people through excessive fines to show any kind of return, and as such, it fails the test of good public policy.

The scheme is fundamentally flawed; believing you can reform it to make it “better” is like thinking you can make a concrete plane fly by giving it a new coat of paint.

The failure of the congestion charge, however, is the tip of the iceberg.

Londoners have had enough of politicians who say one thing and do another, with government that hinders rather than helps.

We must transform public transport; get the police back on our streets, improve the environment and cut the Council Tax.

London deserves more for less. Every year Londoners pay £15bn more in taxes than they receive back in services. We believe it is time to vote to put the capital first.

Our policies include:

Scrapping the Zone 1 – 6 fare system: We will abolish the current fare structure and introduce a £1 ticket that will give unlimited travel for 2 hours, a day ticket would be £2. Transfers between buses, tubes and trains would not require the purchase of new tickets.

We must fundamentally improve London’s taxis, and make provision to cut fares by 50%. We must reintroduce electric trolley buses, and install charging points for electric and plug in hybrid cars on every street

Effective policing: Nearly £100,000 is spent on policing the average street , we believe you deserve far better value for their money.

Abolishing the Council Tax for pensioners, it is another unfair tax that must be scrapped.

Allowing people to opt out of paying the Olympic Levy and introducing discounts on tickets for those who do pay.

Transforming public libraries, parks and leisure facilities.

Introducing free high speed wireless internet access across London.

Full details on all our policies can be found at www.stopcc.com

We believe that politics should be about delivering what YOU want, rather than accepting what THEY want to give you. The only way to get better government is to vote for it.“

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)

Tagged With: Road pricing

RECENT UPDATES

852 new homes to be built in Acton by Transport for London

HGV operators in London urged to apply for a Direct Vision Standard permit

TfL proposes bus and tube cuts and annual fares increases to achieve long-term financial sustainability

London’s entire bus fleet now meets ULEZ emissions standards




Popular

1,700 extra Santander Cycles are coming to London’s streets

TfL confirms changes to Older Person’s Freedom Pass and 60+ Oyster card hours

TfL fares to rise in return for £1.6bn Government rescue package

Election for Mayor of London and London Assembly postponed until 2021

FEATURED

City Hall to move to Docklands as Mayor seeks to raise £55m for frontline services

‘Concern’ over TfL’s ability to deliver major projects in wake of Crossrail cost overruns

City Hall halts London Overground ticket office closures but many will still see opening hours reduced

Transport for London confirms bus cuts will go ahead despite passenger opposition

GOT A STORY?

As the original London news and scrutiny site we've been casting an eye over the capital's public services and politicians since 1999.

 

Many of our top stories started with a tip-off from a reader - if you've got something you'd like us to cover get in touch and we'll do the rest.

Stay In Touch

  • E-mail
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Copyright © 2021 MayorWatch Publications Limited · MayorWatch is Registered Trademark · All Rights Reserved · Contact Us · Terms of Use · Privacy Policy

MayorWatch Publications Limited · 20-22 Wenlock Road · London N1 7GU · Company Number 6291816

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.