The Mayor is considering a number of new policies, which could be introduced as early as May 2024, including extending the ULEZ to cover the whole of Greater London; introducing a daily clean air charge across all of Greater London for all but the cleanest vehicles; and introducing a Greater London boundary charge to non-London registered vehicles entering Greater London.
The Road Haulage Association (RHA) said the plans “ignore the needs of road users” and “regressively attack those who have to use vehicles for work or essential mobility.”
Duncan Buchanan, RHA Policy Director – England and Wales, said the measures proposed by the Mayor are “part of the long-term pattern of road miss-management in London that has deliberately created more and more congestion and has reduced the resilience of our roads to the point where commercial road activity is being damaged. Trips are getting longer, more expensive and less reliable.”
He continued: “Worse, the Mayor, TfL and London local authorities are blind to the city’s need for commercial transport. Coaches, vans and lorries do not work in London for fun, they work in London to provide people and business with services and goods they need. Adding time and cost to commercial road transport makes London less competitive and more expensive.”
The RHA is calling for a national debate about the positive value of mobility. “The green agenda too often is dismissive or ignorant of the critical need for transport,” Buchanan continued.
“Freight transport in all forms, buses and coaches need road networks that facilitate mobility, not networks that prevent efficient clean use.”
Logistics UK’s Head of Policy - South, Natalie Chapman, said logistics businesses are already facing increased charges as a result of the higher congestion charge and higher Penalty Charge Notice costs recently introduced on London’s red routes.
She added: “A Greater London boundary charge and further clean air charges... will place additional stress on industry, which already operates on small margins of between one and three per cent. Logistics UK is keen to see greater detail on the consultation proposals; any new measures introduced must be proportionate, achievable and ensure that logistics businesses can continue to deliver for the capital, its residents and its workforce.”