Motorists with 4x4s, sports cars and some mainstream family
cars will soon have to pay £25 to drive into central London's
congestion zone.
The charge, which is to treble for so-called gas guzzlers,
is being billed as an environmental move by officials.
However, the AA and the RAC said it is a cynical ploy that
"has nothing to do with saving the planet but everything
to do with raising revenue".
From October, a £25 daily charge will fall on cars with
carbon dioxide emissions of 226 grams per kilometre.
These are vehicles which fall into the top band G of the Government's
road tax rankings.
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Range Rovers, BMW X5s, Porsches and people movers will be hit.
But many mainstream family cars, including some variants of
the Ford Mondeo, Vauxhall Vectra and seven-seater Vauxhall Zafira,
will also be included, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and
Traders warned.
The rules will also change for large petrol-electric hybrid
cars, such as luxury Lexus models, which have enjoyed a blanket
exemption.
That will end and hybrids will be assessed like conventional
cars on their C02 emissions. Ken Livingstone, the capital's
mayor, said: "The CO2 charge will encourage people to switch
to cleaner vehicles or public transport.
"This is the "polluter pays" principle."
He hopes other cities would follow suit.
But Edmund King, president of the AA, said: "Larger families
who do low mileage will be clobbered by this new tax. The mayor
can't make up his mind whether this is a congestion charge or
an environmental charge scheme. The only thing motorists know
for sure is that it is really a cash collection charge."
Paul Everitt, chief executive of the SMMT, said: "Families
will be clobbered. The scheme has been billed as a gas-guzzler
tax."
But families with some variants of popular cars will be forced
to pay as well, he added.
Vehicles with 120g/k or less will pay nothing. These include
band A or band B cars, such as the Volkswagen Polo BlueMotion,
the new Fiat 500, the new Mini, Renault Clio and Ford Fiesta.
Cars in between will pay £8 a day.
The congestion charge is currently £8 for all except
the greenest cars such as petrol-electric hybrids, which are
exempt.
Full
article here.
