[sustran] Re: Levying Tolls for reducing congestion on roads

[Kisan Mehta]

Dear
Colleagues,

See how road pricing is used as a tool to reduce congestion
in London amd other British cities.

We in Mumbai and other cities construct roads for
motorists yet exempt motorists from any taxes, take away
about 15% of every ticket that bus passengers pay and put
the entire burden on the poor not having access to vehicles.
We remove pavements for flyovers for motorists with the
result  that Mumbai has the highest road accident rate in
the world.  Pedestrians form 95% of accident victims.
All this with the World Bank's blessings.

Road pricing for vehicles has been the most effective for
reducing congestion. Our authorities would not try.
Best wishes.

Kisan Mehta
Te/Fax: 00 91 22 2414 9688
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Suburban drivers to face tolls in congestion charge shake-up
By Barrie Clement Transport Editor. The Independent, London
02 January 2004

Ken Livingstone's aides are drawing up plans for the controversial
imposition of suburban road tolls to ease London's chronic traffic
congestion, a move which could ultimately see motorists paying
for every journey inside the vast M25 area.

The Mayor of London believes the £5 charge in the centre of the capital has
proved so successful that it should pave the way for a system of levies
covering much of Greater London, according to his officials.

Transport for London believes it is "no longer outrageous" to think in terms
of a London-wide scheme. Peter Hendy, Transport for London's managing
director of surface transport, said most estimates calculated that half the
road congestion in Britain was concentrated in London.
"If the Mayor can solve that with new technology it would make an enormous
contribution to the country's economy," he said.

Among the early possibilities under discussion are congestion charges in
shopping centres such as Kingston and Bromley and tolls on main arterial
roads into London such as the A12 in east London. Mr Livingstone has already
raised the possibility of charges for motorists driving to Heathrow - a
proposal that could help to satisfy ministers' stipulation that the airport
must meet tough new pollution limits if a third runway is to be built.

Despite initial indifference to the scheme in central London, the Government
has become convinced that the extension of
road-pricing to other crowded urban roads and motorways is
the most effective means of cutting congestion nationally.

Last month, Britain's first toll motorway opened near Birmingham,
and other cities, notably Edinburgh, are developing plans to
impose charges on drivers.

But a move to impose congestion charges throughout London
would inevitably arouse fierce opposition from drivers,
motoring organisations and businesses.

The most radical proposal on the table would see charges introduced for any
journey within the Greater London area, varying with the
time of day and location. And a team of experts at Transport for
London believes that, given funds from central government, such initiatives
could be operational by around 2010.

They say that while current camera technology has proved sufficient
for the present charging area in central London and a proposed western
extension of the zone, more sophisticated systems must be developed
if tolls are to be more widely applied. Among the alternatives being
evaluated are digital cameras and satellite-based technology.

Mr Livingstone believes that road charging, together with the
expansion of public transport, could be the only response to the
extra traffic expected on the capital's roads. The population of
London is predicted to expand by up to 900,000 over the next 15
years, according to official estimates.

Transport for London argues that this will have a "dramatic"
impact on the road network. Not only will there simply be more
people, there will be higher proportions of car ownership and
greater expectation of mobility, officials believe.

While the present system - introduced on 17 February last year - operates
between 7am and 6.30pm on weekdays, tolls elsewhere
might be levied at different times of the day and at different days
in the week to cope with specific problems.

The deliberations of the Mayor's senior staff however came under
fire from the Conservatives. Damian Green, the shadow Transport Secretary,
said it seemed the Mayor's "hidden agenda" was now becoming public.

"If Ken Livingstone starts trying to tax every motorist who drives
into the Greater London area, it would be a huge issue for the
national economy not just the London economy.
Ideologically-driven anti-motorist policies are not going to
serve London or the country well," he said.

A recent poll by YouGov for the London Evening Standard showed that the
number of people supporting the existing levy had risen from 48 per cent a
year ago to 57 per cent now. The number opposing the scheme has declined
three points to 36 per cent. The newspaper, which had been a vociferous
critic of the initiative, admitted that it had been a success.

However the poll revealed that only around 25 per cent were in
favour of a plan to extend the charge westward towards Kensington
and Chelsea, with 64 per cent against.

There is little doubt that it has had an impact on business in the
centre of London. The John Lewis Partnership has seen sales
decline by 5 per cent at its flagship store in Oxford Street.
Meanwhile, the company's Peter Jones store in Chelsea, which is outside the
area, has enjoyed a 2.5 per cent increase in turnover.

London First, an organisation representing more than 300 large businesses in
the capital, and the London Chamber of Commerce,
with membership among smaller traders, are both reserving final judgement on
the plans until next month, when the congestion
charge will have been operating for 12 months. But business organisations
privately regard the eventual extension of road
charging as inevitable.
   2 January 2004 10:23

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