London drivers ‘could pay per mile’ so that mayor can hit net zero target

Documents reveal ambitious plans for decarbonisation are ‘only possible’ by charging motorists

Drivers in London could have to pay-per-mile charges by the end of the decade in order to achieve the “accelerated” plan to hit net zero, documents reveal.

In an official report, the Mayor said ambitious plans for decarbonisation were “only possible” by charging drivers. The mayor recommitted to plans, published two years ago, last week. With less than a fortnight before the mayoral election on May 2, a fierce row has erupted on whether to introduce pay-per-mile charging.

Last week, it was reported the Mayor’s official transport strategy continues to include a commitment to “investigate proposals for the next generation of road-user charging”, despite opportunities to update the document first published in 2018.

The mayor has been adamant “ruling out” introducing pay-per-mile charging but opponents say the mayor admitted the 2030 net zero target relies on road user charging. The mayor first proposed the 2030 goal – 20 years ahead of the Government’s 2050 target – in 2020, enshrining it in the 2021 re-election manifesto.

The latest manifesto states: “An ambitious target of making London a net zero-carbon city by 2030 – faster than any comparable city”.

To help the target, the mayor commissioned research by a sustainability consultancy, which in 2022 published a report on potential “pathways” to carbon neutrality. The report said “all scenarios would benefit from London-wide road user charging introduced as early as possible”, with charging “key early building blocks”.

The mayor picked an “accelerated green” pathway needing “London-wide road-user charging” from the “mid-late 2020s”.

In the formal response, the mayor said: “Reductions required – 27% cut in vehicle kilometres – is only possible with road user charging.”

The mayor went on: “Such a system could replace all existing charges with drivers paying per mile, based on pollution, congestion and public transport access.”

Opponents also point out the mayor’s 2023 book says “plans to introduce a new, comprehensive, road user charging system”.

At a hustings, a Labour councillor said the book was “personal, not the manifesto” and “the mayor ruled out pay-per-mile for now”.

The opposition candidate said there was “no doubt he will put \[pay-per-mile\] in” based on “all the evidence”.

But a spokesman said: “The mayor has repeatedly and categorically ruled out pay-per-mile. It will not be introduced despite misleading statements.”

Conclusion

There is absolutely no doubt that Pay-Per-Mile is on their radar. Unfortunately, there was not enough resistance to ULEZ and I doubt that the conservatives will do anything to remove it, in fact, I would argue that they were complicit in its execution by their lack of opposition, there is no way the the Government of the United Kingdom could not have stopped the Mayor of London from doing something that was hated so much by the public. Therefore, I believe that they were happy to see Transport for London raise millions of pounds by extorting unjustified payments from motorists, because that would be money that the Government would not need to find.

Road pricing is being put into place behind the scenes and as always, they will blatantly lie about it, but once it is launched, it will be a slippery slope to dystopia. Control of who drives where and when, permission denied if you do not obey, or if you disagree with their sinister narrative, in fact any excuse for these power hungry, disturbed people to control the masses.