Do you remember the glee which met Ken Livingstone’s proposal to convert the Congestion Charge into a device for penalising evil 4×4 “Chelsea Tractor” drivers?
At the time, the AA argued that the proposals would miss out on an awful lot of 4x4s and would catch a good number of family cars and people carriers. However, the focus at the time was firmly on the iniquity of those who committed the rus in urbe faux pas: swanning around the streets of London in a vehicle which conjured up images of gymkhanas and Young Farmers events. So, the obvious point – that large families with large cars would be hit, disproportionately – was missed.
The BBC points out that the following cars will henceforth be facing a £25 charge:
– Ford Galaxy Ghia
– Honda Accord 06 Tourer
– Hyundai Santa Fe
– Renault Espace Dynamique
– Peugeot 407
– Vauxhall Vectra
– Vauxhall Zafira
– Volkswagen Passat
– Volkswagen Golf
– Volvo V70
Me? I don’t drive. But my wife does. And the good news is that the family Landrover Freelander remains nicely within the low-emission £8 band.
