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Tax: how much is the London Congestion Charge?

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16 June 2006

London Congestion Carge area details of operation

Congestion Charge operates Monday to Friday

From 19 February 2007, the London congestion charge requires drivers to pay £8 per day if they wish to drive through west and central London.

The charging zone operates from 7am to 6.00pm Monday to Friday. Originally it ran until 6.30pm when the Inner Ring Road formed the ‘boundary’.

However, from February 2007 the zone has been extended westward to cover most of Kensington and Chelsea.

You can pay the charge up to 90 days in advance, either online, by phone, by post, or at selected shops, petrol stations and car parks. Late payment incurs a £2 surcharge.

From 10 December 2007 non payment carries a £120 charge. This reduces to £60 if paid within 14 days

For staff who regularly need to travel in the congestion zone, a Fast Track Card will speed up payment – the card contains all details for driver and vehicle and is protected by a PIN number.

An Automated Fleet scheme is available for fleets. However, this requires a minimum of 10 vehicles to be registered on the scheme. Registration costs £10 per vehicle.

Some alternative fuel vehicles, such as petrol electric hybrids (Honda Civic Hybrid and Toyota Prius), receive a 100% discount.

  • Congestion Charge payable Mon-Fri 0700 to 1800
  • Charge is £8 payable up to midnight on day of travel
  • Pay next day facility costs £10
  • Non payment charge of £120
  • Certain vehicles, like hybrids, have a 100% discount
  • There are certain no charge ‘through-routes’ across the zone
  • Picture (c) Transport for London 2005
  • More details can be found at www.cclondon.com

 

Proposed Congestion Charge changes

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has initiated consultation on the London Congestion Zone. The key points include:

  • An increase of the £8 charge to £10. Users of the Auto Pay scheme (see below) would pay £9;
  • an automated payment system against a single credit or debit card for up to five vehicles at £10 a vehicle to register (Auto Pay). Visits into the congestion zone would be recorded and the charge debited at the end of the month;
  • permanent removal of the western extension;
  • a change in the discount scheme for hybrid cars to qualify for 100% discount from the charge vehicles will need to emit 100g/km CO2 or less and meet Euro5 exhaust standards; and
  • plug-in hybrids to receive a 100% charge discount.

The consultation closes on August 02, 2010.

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Ralph Morton

Ralph Morton

Ralph Morton is an award-winning journalist and the founder of Business Car Manager (now renamed Business Motoring). Ralph writes extensively about the car and van leasing industry as well as wider fleet and company car issues. A former editor of What Car?, Ralph is a vastly experienced writer and editor and has been writing about the automotive sector for over 35 years.

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