The Mayor’s decision to slap the congestion charge on electric vans and cars for the first time will do as much harm to London’s air quality as cutting down one in five of its trees, it was claimed today.
The long standing exemption from the charge for fully electric vehicles (EVs) is due to come to an end in the New Year with cars having to pay £13.50 and vans £9. These are discounted from the proposed new full rate of £18.
The proposal, which is still subject to a consultation by Transport for London, (TfL) has provoked fury among EV owners, small businesses and private hire companies that have invested heavily in converting to green vehicles.
The Standard has headed the opposition to the changes through our Leading the Charge campaign.
Some surveys have suggested that many drivers and businesses will give up their EVs when they next change vehicle and revert to cheaper petrol or diesel alternatives.
New analysis by Electric London - a coalition of businesses and other organisations pushing for more electrification - suggests that rolling back the so called Cleaner Vehicle Discount (CVD), would undo years of progress in converting the capital’s car and van fleet to electric.
The policy change could generate pollution equivalent to chopping down 1.7 million trees, representing 20% of London's total tree cover - enough to strip the capital’s parks and public spaces bare over one and a half times, according to the analysis.
This loss would be comparable to clearing Hyde Park of trees 540 times over, or stripping Hampstead Heath’s greenery 86 times, representing a severe setback for the city’s air quality.
Michael Dnes, spokesperson for Electric London said: “Maintaining the Cleaner Vehicle Discount is critical to sustaining London’s clean air progress and supporting the businesses and people that have done the right thing by investing in electric vehicles.
“Preserving the CVD will encourage further EV adoption, protect public health, and ensure London remains a global leader in sustainable transport. We urge City Hall to maintain this policy to safeguard our environment and keep London at the forefront of global green transport.”
The analysis was conducted by policy consultancy Public First and was based on the assumption that removing to CVD will increase London wide NOx emissions 142.2 tonnes, or 3%, and increase PM2.5 emissions by 0.7104 tonnes, or 2.4%.
Jemima Hartshorn, founder and director, of campaign group Mums for Lungs said: “The ULEZ has been a success story, but air pollution is London remains toxically high, causing and exacerbating asthma.
“In 2024, 120 000 of London’s children attended hospital struggling to breathe. More needs to be done and diesel vans are the biggest contributor to air pollution in Central London.
“We urge the Mayor to ensure that SME and charities will continue to have clear incentives to switch their fleet from diesel to electric.”
A TfL spokesperson said: “The Congestion Charge has been in place since 2003 to manage traffic and congestion in the central one per cent of London during the busiest times of day.
“Without the changes proposed in our consultation, the charge would become less effective, with an estimated additional 2,200 vehicles in the zone on an average weekday.
"Our proposals include a new Cleaner Vehicle Discount to ensure that it will still be cheaper for those driving electric vehicles into the Congestion Charge zone. We are now carefully analysing all consultation responses and will be working on a detailed response to issues raised.”
Leading The Charge is supported by commercial partners which share the project’s aims but our journalism remains editorially independent
