Ken's 5 congestion charge sounds like such a simple idea. Here's why

MAYOR Ken Livingstone has revealed details of his controversial plans to levy a 5 congestion charge on drivers entering central London - provoking a stream of letters to the Evening Standard.

One reader - Peter Tachauer - highlighted important issues he said were of concern to millions of motorists in London.

W e put his questions and others to the Mayor, and carry Mr Livingstone's answers below. His department said it would release m o re detailed plans next Monday following further consultation, and that the earliest charging can be introduced is January 2003.

Mr Tachauer, who commutes to his job in the city by train and Tube from Redbridge, said: "Much of w hat Mr Livingstone said was simply politicians' sound bite material.

He failed to explain in detail how the system will work for people living and working in London."

He added: "I believe the system will be brought to the ground by dishonest motorists slipping through with unregistered cars, because whenever you start to charge people for something they will go out of their way to avoid paying.

"I am also concerned that drivers will be totally unable to avoid straying into the charging zone - nobody has an encyclopaedic knowledge of the streets except cabbies. How on earth will they know, when they are driving in an unfamiliar part of London, that they are about to head into a charging zone?"

Here are the Mayor's answers.

Q: How many charge-evading motorists do you expect to catch/not to catch?

A: The probability of being caught is very high. We expect a capture rate of 92 per cent.

Q: What will happen to motorists forced to enter the zone through no fault of their own (poor lost souls, those directed by police officers or traffic signs because of road closures, burst water mains etc)?

A: Those directed by police officers, due to traffic closures for example, will not be liable and police will be in constant communication with us so they are aware of such circumstances. We are in the process of setting up this liaison unit with the police. Traffic signs will give plenty of advance warning that motorists are entering the zone. Anyone who wishes to travel to central London but has no knowledge of the zone will have until midnight to pay.

Q: How will the Mayor prevent such a large area being breached by drivers using side roads, driving against the flow of traffic on one- way streets, etc?

A: There are approximately 180 gateways on the zone boundary and all of them will be covered by cameras. We are in close liaison with local authorities about any traffic management that they wish to see introduced to protect their roads adjacent to the zone boundary.

Q: What will the Mayor do about a line of slow-moving vehicles passing before a numberplate-reading camera? Only the front vehicle will have its plate read. All those following will not be filmed if closely following the car in front (and people will drive nose-to- tail to avoid being filmed, thus increasing the risk of accidents).

A: Slow-moving traffic is not a problem because of the height of the enforcement cameras from the vehicle. Trials have demonstrated it is not possible to drive that close to another vehicle without colliding/being spotted. T he cameras are only being used for enforcement purposes and will therefore only be needed to capture the small proportion of the total number of vehicle plates - those which have not paid.

Q: Will non-payers find the whole panoply of the criminal justice system mobilised against them?

A: No - non-payment of the charge is a civil offence. But failure to respond to further requests for payment can then become a criminal matter.

Q: Who will be expected to enforce the payments?

A: Enforcement of payments will be undertaken by Transport for London and the Civil Court procedure, and where appropriate criminal proceedings.

Q: How will you appeal?

A: It will be a similar appeals process as for decriminalised parking, with recourse to similar adjudication if necessary.

Q: How long will the evidence be kept for citizens to challenge a charge?

A: The evidence will be kept until the penalty is paid or until the case is closed. (TfL will release more details on this).

Q: Will it mean the bailiffs at the door if there's no payment or a dispute?

A: Similar to parking, ultimately persistent refusal to pay the charge and penalties could lead to civil court procedures involving bailiffs.

Q: Are you picturing front and back plates?

A: Yes, but mostly the front.

Q: Will you have to phone if you are exempt?

A: No. We will be notified about vehicles which are totally exempt as a result of their classification by the DVLA. As for discounts, all will have to register annually and some will pay a small annual fee. Residents eligible for a 90 per cent discount would have to pay a nominal fee and prove residency.

Q: How will communications work with the police if, for example, there is a burst water main or bomb scare?

A: We have been working closely with the police to ensure that appropriate communications avenues will be in place in these eventualities. In the event of a major incident causing disruption in the zone, police have powers to override the congestion charging regulations.

Q: Does the Mayor intend to force drivers to enter the zone by major roads and turn the side roads into zone exit routes only? Or will he convert the side roads into gated cul-de-sacs?

A: See earlier answer.

Q: Does he intend to use the number-plate cameras on every possible route into the zone, no matter how small the road?

A: See earlier answer.

Q: Will the Mayor employ the staff to ensure that a numberplate camera has not misread the registration number of a vehicle? It would not be unreasonable to expect more than 50 million numberplates to be read every year. A misread rate of even two per cent could be an administrative nightmare.

A: Only those numberplates which have not

paid the charge will need to be captured by the system, so the number that need to be recorded is much smaller than you suggest.

The numberplate reading system has an internal check which shows how accurate a reading has been. Only those not considered accurate will be checked. Each vehicle issued with a penalty will be checked.

Q: How will you cope with error/inaccurate DVLA records?

A: We are currently working with the DVLA to help in the upgrading of their records.

Processes are being developed to deal with repeatoffenders who are not properly registered on DVLA records. Similar arrangements will be in place to deal with those who persistently refuse to pay.These are likely to include clamping and towing aw ay.

Q: Surely the system is going to be overwhelmed by evaders and the weight of inaccurate registration details? How many staff will there be to chase up unregistered vehicles? Also, what will happen if there are too many calls from motorists wishing to pay the charge?

What is the call centre capacity?

A: We are in the process of procuring this and m a ny other of the necessary services

associated with congestion charging but there will be flexibility built into the system to cater for peaks of activity and changing patterns of demand.

Q: What about people using more than one private car or fleet car to go back into the zone?

A: The scheme is zone-based and the charge covers a vehicle for the day. So once you have registered or paid, you will be able to enter or leave the zone as many times as you wish during the charging period. How ever, if someone uses more than one vehicle within the zone during the charging period, they will have to pay more than once.

Q: What happens to those motorists who have been following Government advice to stagger their journeys to work by arriving much earlier or later, to help ease congestion during the rush hour?

Will they too have to pay 5 just for one leg of their journey?

A: They will still be travelling for part of their journey during the congested period because central London is now congested throughout the day, between 7am and 7pm. In traffic term s, there have not been "peaks" or "off peaks" during that period for some years now.

'Improve public transport first'

EDMUND KING, executive director of the RAC Foundation, said: "Our main concern is that public transport will not be adequately improved before the introduction of charging in 2003.

"Anyone who currently suffers the agony of an overcrowded, overheated Underground system will not welcome additional car drivers being charged off the road and forced underground to join the rest of us who already suffer enough on a daily basis.

"The eyes of the world will be on this London scheme so the Mayor cannot afford to get it wrong. The introduction should be delayed until w e are guaranteed there are viable alternative means of transport for drivers charged off the roads, and that

we are sure the system actually works.

"If we get this wrong the whole scheme could backfire with business and shops leaving the capital."

The two-minute guide

UNDER Mayor Ken Livingstone's congestion charging plans, motorists will pay 5 a day to drive their vehicles into central London, writes Colin Freeman.

You will be able to register in advance by phone so the charge can be automatically taken from your credit card.

It is thought that shops might be equipped with National Lottery- style kiosks where numberplates could be registered and charges paid - and there will be internet and postal registration as well. Exact details are still being worked out.

When you drive into the congestion charging zone, a camera will read your numberplate and, if you have registered, note you down as someone who has already paid.

The 5 fee will entitle you to go in and out of the congestion- charging zone as many times as you want in a day - as long as you are travelling in the same vehicle.

The numberplate of any car that does not appear on the register as having paid the charge will be recorded.

If you do not have time to pay in advance you can still enter the charge zone - so long as you pay up before midnight that day.

If you pay before 7pm, it costs 5. Between 7pm and midnight, you will pay a higher charge of 10. The higher charge is designed to encourage early payment.

At midnight the "Cinderella factor" kicks in. The cameras will have recorded the details of your car's registration, and if you have not paid by then you will face a fine of 80. Th at can be reduced to 40 for prompt payment, and will increase to 120 for late payment.

Numerous warning signs will notify you that you are approaching the charging zone, in order to reduce the risk of people straying in accidentally. You will, how ever, be able to drive around the boundary road for free.

The charge will operate from 7am to 7pm, excluding weekends and bank holidays.

Exempt from paying will be black cabs, motorbikes and mopeds, emergency vehicles, most military vehicles, buses, Royal Mail vehicles, certain council vehicles, and those carrying disabled people.

Vehicles operating on new ,environmentally friendly, altern ative fuels will also be exempt provided that their owners live in London, although they will have to pay a small annual registration fee to cover administration costs.

People living within the charging zone will get a 90 per cent discount, again subject to a small annual registration fee.

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