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Cars could be banned from central London on designated days amid fears that Britain might not hit clean air targets.
Boris Johnson says it might be necessary to explore the idea if the country fails to meet European Union limits, which would result in a £300million fine for the Government in the next 18 months. The Local Government Association said the fine would add £15 to the average annual council tax bill.
The Mayor has drawn up his own clean air strategy involving planting more trees, "retro-fitting" buildings and charging lorry drivers. But he admitted: "If we cannot get the emissions down by the means we outline then we may have to have traffic-free days. That is, I think, an exciting thing."
The Mayor's draft transport strategy states: "There is likely to be a role for more stringent special measures used intensively for short periods of time which primarily affect how many and which kinds of vehicle can travel to and through any location. These measures could include restricting vehicle access or movement into or within an area or diverting traffic away from that location." Areas earmarked include Marble Arch and Edgware Road, but the scheme could be extended to a wider area.
Darren Johnson, chairman of the London Assembly and Green Party member, welcomed the idea but criticised the Mayor for delaying action against white vans, scrapping mid-year inspections of black cabs and abolishing the western extension of the congestion charge.
Reader views (21)
Bet Sarah Bradshaw has a large bottom from sitting in her car all day!
- Greg Macbeth, London, 18/05/2010 12:02
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I love the 'outraged' of [insert town nowhere near London] comments on all of this.
At the end of the day, for those of us who actually live in central London, its patently clear that decades of allowing car travel to become more and more dominant results in pollution, congestion and noise.
If people are so keen to drive absolutely eveywhere they should move to the home counties - where a bus an hour counts as a frequent service.
- Liam, London, 08/12/2009 16:52
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Wasn't the extortionate congestion charge the 'big idea' of Red Ken to rid London of those pesky cars and all that pollution?
Here we have the eco warriors foaming at the mouth saying how London's air is so very poor but London is the only world city with such a large congestion charging zone which does actually restrict drastically the number of cars.
Horror of horrors then - maybe the problem is emissions from public transport and taxis. Oh; and what about the exhaust from every home heating boiler?
Just maybe these eco diehards should look elsewhere for their anti-CO2 fix and stop demonising the car - which is after all the most efficient, convenient and comfortable way to travel.
- Jason Penn, London UK, 08/12/2009 11:28
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Sarah Bradshaw, Enfield, Middx
Very well put, the tree hugging cyclists trying to promote their evil religion of climate change.
- P Staker, London, 04/12/2009 16:01
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so much hot air, how could it realistically work?
public transport is overburdened and creaking at the seems.
untold cars carry vital equipment and tools of the trade;
ban them and you restrict free trade, undermine an economic revival and increase the number of claimants for social security.
enforcing such a ban would distract the police from crime prevention and detection and increase the already overstretched courts and further erode confidence, trust and support for all authority.
another foot in mouth soundbite, ill thought through and
destined to be quickly and quietly forgotten,
- Mike O'Brien, london.uk, 04/12/2009 15:00
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Sarah Bradshaw, post up your address and bank account details - me and all the other "scum otherwise known as cyclists" will help you pack and put some money into your fare to help you emigrate. We'll even wipe the foam from your mouth.
- Austen, London, 04/12/2009 14:34
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"Particular pollutants from traffic pollution buries deep in the lungs of children and people with respiratory illness, increasing asthma rates and cancers. 2,905 premature deaths in Greater London in 2005 were attributable to dangerous airborne particles (PM10s)."
Claire Roberts, Elephant and Castle
Yes Claire, and the primary source of PM10 emissions is Diesel engines, principally those in busses and trucks.
So once we ban the busses how do you propose to fit 9 million people onto the tube when it can only cope with 3 million on a good day?
The only way to meet the target is to ban diesel engines in London and swap the engines in the busses for LPG powered petrol engines. No other options are workable.
- Stew, London, 04/12/2009 13:49
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Tell the EU where to go Boris. The climate has changed for millions of years and scientists used to be trusted.
- Chas, Home Counties, 04/12/2009 13:42
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John Bull, Londonistan, UK:
"It will only really work if we have a public transport system that can cope with the extra load.."
I agree. Guess who terminated most of the proposed public transport projects started by the previous Mayor.
- Mark H, London England, 04/12/2009 13:14
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I can guarantee you this will NEVER happen and that Boris has been prepped to say it by his beloved Cameron to make the Tories more attractive to the deodorant-resistant, 2-wheeled-pavement-riding, red-light-shooting, uninsured, aggressive, arrogant, believe-they-are-above-the-law scum otherwise known as cyclists. The day that lot take over our streets I will emigrate.
- Sarah Bradshaw, Enfield, Middx, 04/12/2009 13:07
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Dear Katharine
The measures highlighted in your article seem inevitable from early in 2010, without a better plan from the Mayor, if the UK's application for a time extension to comply with health based legal standards for dangerous airborne particles is rejected by the European Commission this month (as seems likely).
Berlin looked thoroughly at similar short term traffic-ban measures in 2005 but dismissed them as likely to cause chaos (and be ineffective) - not least because rubbish needs to be collected etc! Instead, the Berliners chose to introduce an inner low emission zone as the best means of systematically protecting public health. It costs about 5 euros once for a windscreen sticker and you get fined about 40 euros and one point on your driving licence if you drive in the 'environmental zone' when not allowed. Diesel vehicles of all sorts are a particular target.
It would be better if the Mayor tackles London's serious air quality problem, which may have caused some 6,900 premature deaths in London in 2005 (assuming UK average pollution), with organised systematic measures rather than chaotic traffic bans. Traffic-bans will only be needed if the Mayor fails to tackle the problem in the way countless other cities around Europe have done i.e. one of more inner LEZs per city.
With best wishes.
Yours sincerely
Simon Birkett
Campaign for Clean Air in London
- Simon Birkett, London, 04/12/2009 12:50
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This hasn't just come out the blue though has it? The previous administration knew this was coming and started setting up initiatives to pre-empt it. Initiatives like congestion charge zones, low emission zones and progressively taxing cars out of central London. All Boris has done is steadily undo all this good work - very popularist (as ever), but equally short-sighted and now we'll either have to all leave our cars at home, or pay a massive fine. Neither of which is going to be popular or smart.
Perhaps Ken's "mad" ideas weren't so daft after all?
- Alex Ball, London, UK, 04/12/2009 12:47
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Also these "doubtful claims" are not so doubtful, stand on the pavement on Bishopsgate at lunchtime and take a deep breath, I dare you!
- Jacqui Smith'S Dvd Collection!, Hackney, London, 04/12/2009 12:28
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I love the outraged comments by Jimmy, in Glasgow!
Stay there, the air is cleaner...
This is a great idea, zone 1 should be public transport only for two days out of the week.
- Jacqui Smith'S Dvd Collection!, Hackney, London, 04/12/2009 12:26
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Banning vehicles according to even/odd registration is being done on the continent, however the wealthy get around it by buying a second car.
Putting more tax on HGVs will lead to much higher prices in the shops, as if these weren't going up fast enough, therefore hitting the ones on lower income.
I think we ought to be more honest and admit that there are too many cars in circulation. I own one too, though I don't use it much.
And how can you tell people to leave their cars at home when we have by far the highest priced public transport on the planet?
- John Smith, Londonistan, Bankrupt Britain, EUSSR, 04/12/2009 12:18
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"Far better idea to get all cyclists to wear breathing apparatus to catch their excess carbon dioxide created by heavy breathing. Each cyclist creates more CO2 than a cow and a mini car in a days cycling - they are not as green as you might imagine."
Whatever CO2 emissions come from a cyclist, they are carbon neutral (or could be) as the cyclist runs on bio fuel. Most cars do not yet do so. Particular pollutants from traffic pollution buries deep in the lungs of children and people with respiratory illness, increasing asthma rates and cancers. 2,905 premature deaths in Greater London in 2005 were attributable to dangerous airborne particles (PM10s).
London has the worst pollution levels in Britain and some of the worst in Europe. We are the "Dirty Old Man" of Europe.
Traffic-free days can be wonderful for retail, the Oxford Street closures show how an urban environment can be transformed by banning traffic.
- Claire Roberts, Elephant and Castle, 04/12/2009 12:17
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What a stupid and naive idea, how about deliveries, taxi's and car drops for the sick and disabled - yes there are hospitals in that zone.
Far better idea to get all cyclists to wear breathing apparatus to catch their excess carbon dioxide created by heavy breathing. Each cyclist creates more CO2 than a cow and a mini car in a days cycling - they are not as green as you might imagine.
No once again this is stupid. How can a capital city have its infrastructure come to a halt because of some doubtful claims by a discredited Cambridge research group and an unelected EU political agenda that nobody else is conforming to except London - get real get a life and get better informed. The ego warriors will be the ruin of teh economy of London and then we will hear real complaining that the infrastructure is not good enough and that mass unemployment means that nobody can afford a cycle let alone have good enough health to use one.
- Jimmy, Glasgow, 04/12/2009 11:24
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Why on earth have we agreed that the EU can fine us £300million? Where would that money go? Can't we just ignore it, since we ARE a significant part of the EU? Won't our fine be cancelled out by all the other EU members' fines when they similarly fail to make the grade? Or did someone cunningly exempt all the Eastern countries from these fines?
- Kenny, London, 04/12/2009 11:14
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It will only really work if we have a public transport system that can cope with the extra load. We shouldn't have to wait until 2012 for this..
- John Bull, Londonistan, UK, 04/12/2009 11:08
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Sounds like a good idea, old Boris is going up in my estimation.
- David, London, 04/12/2009 10:31
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The French tried banning half the vehicles, odd-reg nos days and even-reg nos days years ago in Paris. It could work in London. We have the technology to do it. But then, people would simply get hold of two reg no plates or two cars. A blanket ban makes sense. Start with Sunday. Extend to Saturday.
- Dhan Raj, Basildon, 04/12/2009 10:21
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