Public Servant Lifestyle

New poll shows strong support for higher charges for the most polluting cars.

New poll findings show that two thirds of Londoners support proposals to charge cars with the highest greenhouse gas emissions £25 a day to drive in the central London congestion charge zone and introduce a zero charge for the lowest emitting vehicles.

The results, announced today by Ken Livingstone, Mayor of London, come from polling carried out by Ipsos Mori as part of the recent consultation on the emissions based charging proposals. The survey was based on a very large survey of 3,620 Londoners, with around half of those resident in the existing congestion charging zone.

The survey found:

91% of those questioned said that they thought climate change was 'important' or 'very important'

Two-thirds (66%) of respondents were in favour of the proposal upon which Transport for London has consulted, with 38% strongly supporting it. Only 21% opposed the scheme

63% of respondents stated that the higher charge would act as an incentive to use a lower CO2 emitting car

Over two-thirds (68%) of respondents believed that the proposals as consulted upon would benefit London, of which 32% strongly agreed. Only 17% disagreed with this

Chelsea Tractors

According to an announcement by the Greater London Authority (GLA) the proposals consulted upon would see drivers of cars which make the biggest contribution to global warming, those in Vehicle Excise Duty Band 'G' and equivalent, such as some of the so-called 'Chelsea tractors', some high powered sports cars and expensive luxury vehicles, pay £25 a day to drive in the existing central London congestion charge zone.

The great majority of drivers within the zone would be unaffected, and would continue to pay the standard £8 charge. The polling was commissioned as part of Transport for London's consultation on emissions based charging proposals.

The results have been welcomed by environmental pressure group Friends of the Earth (FoE). FoE's London Co-ordinator, Jenny Bates comments: "Road traffic is one of Britain's biggest contributors to climate change. As well as cutting traffic levels, one of the solutions is to get people to use greener cars. Making it more expensive to drive gas-guzzling vehicles is one way of achieving this. We are delighted that most Londoners agree that the most polluting cars should pay a higher congestion charge and urge the Mayor to ensure that this happens as soon as possible."

Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone said: "These results show that the vast majority of Londoners support action to tackle climate change. The proposals consulted upon are part of a package of measures London is taking to lead the way in averting catastrophic climate change.”

Useful links:

Greater London Authority (GLA) website

Congestion Charge website

Transport for London website

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