More pressure on Boris to scrap C-charge extension

BORIS Johnson faced fresh pressure today to scrap the western extension of the congestion charge.

The Mayor has pledged to abide by the result of the residents consultation, which is expected this Friday.

One council in the area has described the zone as "west London's Berlin Wall" and is understood to want it axed irrespective of the result.

Hammersmith and Fulham, just outside the zone, said the £123million extension, launched in February last year, had failed to tackle congestion.

Westminster council also said the scheme had not solved traffic or pollution problems in central London.

Both councils claimed it cut off businesses from their customers and residents from vital services as well as being an unfair £8-a-time levy.

However, Kensington and Chelsea, where residents have had a 90 per cent discount and been able to drive into central London for free, acknowledged there had been some advantages.

There is widespread speculation that locals - who were asked whether the scheme should stay, be scrapped or changed - will decide to dump it.

But some are worried that the Mayor, who would lose about £40million a year, could try to "fudge" the result and keep the scheme in some form.

It was unclear exactly how Mr Johnson could do this unless residents opted for the "third way" choice.

This could mean abolishing the charge in the middle of the day, giving residents a 100 per cent discount or introducing accounts to make payment easier.

One insider said: "I'm pretty confident the results will show that residents are in favour of scrapping it. What Boris then does, well, that's a mystery. There would be a substantial loss of revenue and he has already had to cut back his capital programme. And he's looking for money to pay for things like the bike hire scheme and free travel for the elderly in the morning rush hour."

The earliest Mr Johnson could scrap the scheme, if he took that route, would be the middle of 2010, unless he followed the legally dubious option of turning off the cameras. He is being advised by policy chief Sir Simon Milton, a former Westminster council leader whose opposition to the scheme has softened, and transport commissioner Peter Hendy, who is concerned about lost revenue.

Stephen Greenhalgh, leader of Hammersmith and Fulham council, said: "The vast majority of local residents have consistently said they want this failed experiment to be scrapped. The western extension of the C-charge is west London's Berlin Wall, cutting businesses off from their customers and residents off from vital services. To make matters worse congestion in London is back to square one. We did not ask for it. It has not worked. And it needs to be removed." However, Daniel Moylan, transport spokesman for Kensington and Chelsea council, said: "Advantages include lower volumes of traffic, easier parking... On the other hand, we're aware that it's a payment and therefore a real cost for our residents."