Free parking for electric cars axed - for being too successful

Since 2001, the City of London has issued free roadside parking passes to nearly 500 drivers of the zero-emission cars in a bid to encourage other people to buy one. It has also handed out 539 permits for free parking in its car parks.

But both schemes are being axed or scaled down, because commuters are adding to congestion by using the cars instead of walking, cycling or travelling by public transport.

The car park scheme will be scrapped from the end of this year, forcing owners of electric cars already registered with it to pay £2,000 for an annual permit next year. This will increase to £4,000 in 2010 and to £6,396 - the same as everyone else pays - in 2011.

Owners of electric cars registering for the first time will not get any discount.

Similarly, only those who currently hold free on-street parking permits for electric cars will continue to enjoy this privilege. Newcomers will have to pay the standard charge of £4 an hour at meters.

Today the Nice car company, which has sold 300 Mega City electric vehicles - mostly to Londoners - said that while other councils were launching initiatives to boost sales of electric vehicles the City had "gone into reverse".

Co-founder Julian Wilford said: "The reasons are plain daft. The corporation says free parking encourages people to use electric cars. Surely that's the point. It has nothing to do with improving the environment and everything to do with financial gain."

In a letter to Nice, Paul Symons, the City's assistant traffic manager, said: "These vehicles are now a common sight in the City. The corporation is, however, concerned the free parking has encouraged car use instead of the use of public transport, walking and cycling and does not consider this to be desirable in the highly congested traffic conditions in the City."

Harrow, Islington and Sutton offer free parking for electric vehicles. Kingston, Sutton and Wandsworth offer free recharging at electric points and Sutton also offers free parking in council car parks. Westminster has nearly 60 charging points and offers free parking in payanddisplay bays and a 98 per cent discount at its car parks.