The capital’s growing number of EV drivers will have to pay up to £3000 a year more to enter central London from January after the Mayor confirmed that they will be hit by the congestion charge for the first time.
Transport for London (TfL), which is chaired by Sir Sadiq Khan, today said it has decided to press ahead with strongly opposed plans to extend the congestion charge to green cars and vans, in effect creating a £75 million a year EV tax.
Campaigners said the “disappointing” decision was a huge blow to London’s international reputation for leading the transition to cleaner vehicles as a central plank of efforts to improve its air quality.
Private EV car drivers will pay £13.50 a day to enter the charge zone - which extends from Mayfair to the City - while drivers of commercial EVS such as electric delivery vans will have to fork out £9 a day.
Up to now they have been exempt from the congestion charge since its introduction in 2003 in an arrangement known as the Cleaner Vehicle Discount (CVD).
TfL, which revealed the results of a consultation on the plans earlier today, said that without levying EVs there could be more than 2,000 additional vehicles driving daily in central London “leading to more queues and delays – negatively impacting London’s economy, local businesses, bus passengers and other essential services.” The removal of the CVD is expected to raise an extra £75 million a year revenue for TfL.
In one small scale concession TfL said there will also now be a new 100 per cent discount for ‘back to base’ electric car club vehicle that are hired from and returned to the same marked parking space within the zone.
Nevertheless the decision to press ahead with charges for the vast majority of EV drivers was met with a wall of condemnation from groups championing faster uptake of green transport in London. One said it was the “worst ever week” to be an EV driver in London.
The Standard has spearheaded efforts to force the Mayor into a rethink with our “Leading the Charge” campaign.
The Electric London Coalition, which represents 30 companies and other bodies, promoting the transition to green transport, said: “We are disappointed by TfL’s decision to roll back the CVD.
“The moves risks London’s global leadership in electrification at a critical time and introduces thousands of pounds in new costs for people and businesses doing the right thing.
“There is clear consensus across businesses, environmental groups and unions that the CVD has been one of London’s most effective clear air tools, cutting pollution, and supporting both professional drivers and fleets that keep our city moving.
“London has led the way on electrification. It will now be critical to prioritise long-term policies that deliver equal access to EVs and affordable charging across the capital, and consistent incentives, to maintain progress and confidence. These signals are even more important as EV drivers face a double hit given the new EV tax expected in the budget.
“Electric London looks forward to working constructively with City Hall and TfL to realise our shared ambitions for a cleaner, fairer and greener capital for all Londoners.”
Muniya Barua, deputy chief executive at business group BusinessLDN, said: “City Hall and Transport for London have made great strides in improving air quality in the capital whilst also supporting the transition to electric vehicles (EVs) across the city.
“The Cleaner Vehicle Discount (CVD) has played an important role in driving uptake but it’s not job done and given the Mayor’s ambitious net zero target, now is not the time to reduce the level of support.
“It’s vital these changes do not cause the transition to EVs to stall and we look forward to working with City Hall and TfL to explore other practical steps that can incentivise more people to make the switch, while ensuring the capital keeps moving.”
Edmund King, president of motoring organisation the AA said: “This is a backward step which sadly will backfire on air quality in London. Our AA UK EV Readiness Index shows that many drivers are not quite ready to make the switch to electric vehicles, so incentives are still needed to help them over the line.
“The Mayor needs to reconsider to continue to help more essential van and car journeys in the capital go electric.”
Hina Bokhari leader of the London Assembly Liberal Democrat Group, said: "In a cost-of-living crisis, a stonking 20% price hike will be a hammer blow to already hard-pressed Londoners. But the decision to slash discounts for electric vehicles is a total betrayal of those who did the right thing and invested in going green to help clean up London's air.
"Businesses and traders invested huge sums to decarbonise their vehicles because the Mayor told them to – and now he's moving the goalposts and hitting them with huge charges. It's not only unfair, it's environmentally and economically illiterate.
"The Mayor is pulling the rug out from under London's EV market at precisely the time we should be hitting the accelerator and helping everyone go electric. Just this summer, the Government launched a £650 million grant scheme to boost EV uptake – yet the Mayor is doing the opposite and removing incentives.
“It's extremely short-sighted, it will cost Londoners, it will cost our environment, and it's all the more disappointing coming so soon after the Mayor's return from the UN climate conference in Rio. Perhaps he should have stayed longer – clearly the urgency of getting to net zero didn’t sink in.”
Steve Garelick, GMB Union London Region, said: “Rolling back the Cleaner Vehicle Discount is an affront to working Londoners who answered City Hall’s call to go electric. This decision risks undoing years of progress, which neither our city nor its workers can afford.
“Couriers, private hire drivers, key workers – the people that keep London moving – are being punished for doing the right thing. Private hire drivers already pay substantial costs to TfL and operators to work in London. It is deeply unfair to charge them even more for simply doing their job.”
Judy O’Keefe, director of fleet at telecoms infrastructure company Openreach, which already has more than 5000 EV vans on the road, said: “As one of the UK’s largest fleet operators, we’re proud to be leading the transition to electric vehicles, helping to cut emissions and improve air quality in London and beyond.
“Incentives like the Cleaner Vehicle Discount have been instrumental in making this progress possible, supporting thousands of businesses like ours to invest in cleaner transport. Scaling back support now would be a real setback, especially given the Mayor’s previous leadership in driving London’s EV transition.
“Continued incentives are essential to overcoming barriers and accelerating progress toward a cleaner, more sustainable future.”
Michael Dnes, head of transport policy, at public affairs consultants Stonehaven said: “This is the worst week on record to be an EV driver in London. The Chancellor is set to take £300 a year from the average EV driver under the new pay-per-mile tax, while the Mayor is taking over £3,000 a year from drivers who work a 5-day week in central London. The city will need to work fast to ensure these combined changes don’t jeopardise the Mayor’s EV vision.”
Richard Dilks, chief executive at car club trade body CoMoUK, said: “While it is welcome that car club EVs resident in the Congestion Charge Zone will not be charged, this covers just a handful of vehicles, and so is a very small reduction to the overall increased financial cost of these measures.
“These plans load more cost onto the capital’s car club fleet and risk denying Londoners and visitors access to the capital to shared cars that cut costs and emissions – in particular access to shared EVs.
“As well as enabling users to live a car-free or car-light lifestyle, our research has shown that each car club vehicle replaces 31 private cars in the capital, freeing up space, cutting congestion and improving air quality.
“They also make a big contribution to reducing car ownership and mileage, with members more likely to embrace active travel and public transport too.
“We urge the Mayor and TfL to stop treating shared cars as if they are privately-owned ones, which is completely illogical and a disservice to Londoners.”
Guy Bartlett, CEO of EV charging infrastructure company Believ, said: “While we're disappointed to see the roll back of the Cleaner Vehicle Discount, which risks slowing momentum in London’s EV uptake, we remain fully committed to supporting the transition to EVs. Believ will continue working with partners across the capital to install reliable, accessible and convenient EV charging, helping to keep London moving towards a cleaner, greener future.”
Melanie Shufflebotham, co-founder and COO of charging point mapping company Zapmap, said:"It is disappointing to see TfL's decision on the Cleaner Vehicle Discount (CVD) for electric cars. Whilst there will still be some discount for electric cars, it has been watered down significantly.
“London has not only been leading the way within the UK but also internationally, with evidence that the CVD has been an important driving factor to the high uptake of electric vehicles in the capital.
“This change will impact the high mileage drivers - professional drivers and commercial fleets - particularly hard as it will reduce the financial case for EV, and thus reduce the number of switching to electric, and in turn the resultant benefits in carbon reduction and air quality. This seems a short-sighted decision at a time when we should be building momentum and support for electric cars, cementing London's position as a leading electric city, and not taking away effective policies."
Andy Hackett, Senior Policy Adviser, Centre for Net Zero, said: “It is too early to phase out the Cleaner Vehicle Discount. London’s impressive progress on electric vehicle adoption didn't happen by chance – it is the result of smart, consistent incentives. If we want to keep that momentum and deliver on clean air and net zero goals, we need policy that continues to make EVs the obvious choice. We urge City Hall to keep supporting early adopters while the market and infrastructure continues to mature.”
Zak Bond, Campaign Manager at Clean Cities, said: “Diesel vans are now the biggest source of dirty air on the roads in Central London, so we’re pleased to see the Cleaner Vehicle Discount will continue to incentivise the uptake of greener electric vans. However, we spoke to small businesses and charities over the summer, and we know the decision to halve the discount will be bittersweet for them. Small businesses and charities need more support to go electric, not new charges.
“After looking at the detail, we proposed a 100% discount to the congestion charge for small businesses and charities using electric vans, which would have minimal impact on traffic but give a big boost to those least able to go green. It’s a shame the Mayor has not taken this up.
“We all want to see a cleaner, fairer city. We must now work together with the Mayor to improve the support for small businesses and charities to make the switch. By prioritising electric vehicles and pedal power, we can all benefit from cleaner air, quieter streets, and a more sustainable London.”
Sadiq Khan said: “Keeping London moving by reducing congestion is vital for our city and for our economy. While the congestion charge has been a huge success since its introduction, we must ensure it stays fit for purpose, and sticking to the status quo would see around 2,200 more vehicles using the congestion charging zone on an average weekday next year. We must support Londoners and businesses to use more sustainable travel, so I'm pleased that substantial incentives will remain in place for Londoners who switch to cleaner vehicles, as we work to build a greener and better London for everyone.”
Leading The Charge is supported by commercial partners which share the project’s aims but our journalism remains editorially independent
