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The western extension of the congestion charge was Ken Livingstone's statement of intent following the successful introduction of the original, central zone, charge.
There is little doubt that had he won last year's mayoral election, Mr Livingstone would have attempted to extend the congestion charge further and/or to make it more sophisticated. Congestion is a problem across the city.
A number of people in west London, urged by local traders, gave Boris Johnson their vote in the expectation he would kill off the western extension. Yesterday's Evening Standard report of the postponement of the extension's abolition will have been read with aggravation in the groves of Ladbroke, Westbourne and Portobello.
Their abolitionist hero now looks like a ditherer, unable to fulfil what they thought was effectively a manifesto commitment.
Boris's opponents, notably Greens, Liberal Democrats and exiled Livingstonistas will be disorientated. On the one hand, they will attack the Mayor for his apparent failure of will. On the other, they will want to support the retention of a policy they strongly backed. The longer the western zone exists, the greater the chance road pricing could eventually be extended across the capital.
The annual additional financial yield of the western extension, more than £55 million, is substantial at a time when Transport for London is desperate for every penny. Fare revenues are falling sharply. Yet, the modernisation of London Overground lines, the East London line extension and TfL's contribution to Crossrail are all now costing serious money. The burden of the Tube's revised public-private partnership contract is likely to increase next year.
Reduced TfL income has prompted concerns about above-average fare rises next January. Delaying the abandonment of the western congestion charge zone for a year could create up to £70 million of income.
The Mayor may have calculated that reducing the pressure on fares is worth risking temporary aggravation in parts of Kensington and Chelsea. Welcome to the new world of scarce public resources.
Tony Travers is director for the London group at the LSE.
