London Banter - View Single Post - Legal challenges and congestion charging for 30 second journey leaving zone?

Jeremy Barker · November 29th 03, 07:40 PM posted to uk.transport.london,uk.legal

(Nick) wrote in message om...
chris harrison wrote in message ...
Nick wrote:

In principle I've been agreeing with the congestion charge, but that
At what point, when it isn't deserted and you join a queue (thereby
contributing to that queue and hence the reason for the charge), should
you start paying?

Yep, I'd raise the same questions too if pushing the point you're
trying to make. A charge isn't the problem perse, but more that I
don't get my 5 pounds worth.

Yes you do. You drive within the zone and paying £5 within tyhe zone
is perfectly reasonable.

25 pence would be more reasonable. SE1.
Deverill street joins bartholomew street and you leave the zone. In
case it wasn't clear, it's not 100 yards into the zone (maybe 100 is
even an over estimate), but 100 yards on a side street that's not used
as a rabbit run or anything else and that leaves the zone and filters
into a free flowing dual lane road that leads out of town.

In that case park outside the zone and walk. The only way to get what
you want (which I submit is unreasonable) is to have lots of little
zones and charge a small amount for each one. Much harder to know
which zones you travel in and need to purchase a permit for and much
more expensive to police. The scheme as it operates is a sensible
compromise between being unequivocally "fair" and being workable in
practice.

jb