We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we will assume that you are happy to receive all cookies on the Business Car website. However, if you would like to, you can change your cookies at any time
The start point for the best source of fleet information |
This week Manchester was given the green light to follow London's lead in getting its own congestion charge. Although opinion in the city appears...
This week Manchester was given the green light to follow London's lead in getting its own congestion charge. Although opinion in the city appears split down the middle as to whether this is a good thing or not, a big factor for Manchester in making a decision must be the £1.2 billion of public money from Government that it will receive to support the introduction of a scheme.
Expected to go live in 2013 the major difference between this scheme and London's is that it will only operate for a few hours at peak times, so in the morning and the evening. This means that the impact will be greatest on commuters driving to and from the office.
Under the scheme drivers will be made to install electronic tags in their cars that can be detected by roadside beacons positioned in two rings around the city. Charges will be deducted automatically from prepaid accounts.
While there is plenty of debate around the merits and drawbacks of the charge, the bottom line is that it is inevitable that our biggest and most congested cities will start implementing similar schemes over the next few years, and it is highly unlikely that Manchester will be the last to take this route.
These charges have been implemented all over the world with Singapore the first back in the '70s, and with positive results. In the UK Cambridge and Bristol are at the front of the queue in considering the introduction of congestion charging in return for a grant from the Government's Transport Innovation Fund.
We can complain about road charges as much as we like but the Government has set itself tough environmental targets and we are all going to have to adapt to deal with them. The money Manchester has been given by Government is designed to make improvements to public transport in the city. This will encompass extending the city's tram network, adding extra trains and buses, more bus lanes and 120 American style yellow school buses.
So for most of us the options range from walking, to public transport, or car sharing and the time is fast approaching that we are going to have to start reviewing our travel options. The upshot is that whether you see the 'C' charge as a necessary solution or a cynical tax on drivers, we are all going to have to improve our journey planning to adapt to changing conditions for drivers.
BusinessCar magazine ©2019
Business Car Magazine © 2020 | Business Car is part of NS Media Group.
