In response to the Mayor’s introduction of Ultra Low Emission Zone charging, Jasmine Whitbread, Chief Executive of London First, says:
“Charging for road use is becoming more common place across the world, amid concerns about quality of life including pollution and air quality.
In London, we have a number of charges designed to tackle congestion, emissions and effective movement across the city; and there is an obvious need to seamlessly integrate these to make them simple for individual consumers and businesses to pay.
ULEZ is a positive step for the capital, as keeping London an attractive place to live and work is critical to its future success. As we plan to stay one step ahead, there should be a broader conversation about how to bring these charges together for maximum impact – as well as about finding more sophisticated ways to tackle the growing issue of congestion and emissions than these schemes can offer.”
Ahead of ULEZ coming into effect on Monday 8th April, a London First survey with YouGov showed that 72% of Londoners are supportive of emissions charging, after being told about it.
Other key findings include:
- London is becoming more congested, whether you travel by car, train or tube. Across each mode of transport more than half of Londoners think their journey has got more congested over the last three years (55%, 57%, 52% respectively)
- 57% of adult Londoners say they think charging should move to an on and off peak model, bringing automobiles in line with people’s experience on planes and trains
- And more than 6 in 10 (63%) support a combination of congestion and emissions charging in London in the future.
