Camden’s environment chief Councillor Adam Harrison wants to tackle air pollution

PARKING charges are set for a radical overhaul with Town Hall plans to introduce an “air quality surcharge” on “older” petrol and diesel cars on top of the cost of their parking permits.

A consultation survey on the proposals went live yesterday (Wednesday) with Camden looking at introducing the changes next year.

Under the proposals, petrol cars registered before September 2015 will be subject to the surcharge, as will diesel cars registered before September 2019. Previously, the extra charge has only been paid by the owners of diesel cars.
Council documents said this change reflects “the impact of older petrol vehicles as well as older diesel vehicles on air quality”.

The cost of visitor permits for “older” diesel and petrol cars will also increase.

Blue badge holders can park free of charge in most places, the Town Hall said, while elderly and low-income car owners will be supported with discounts and gradual cost increases.

But owners of electric cars will also be expected to pay more than triple the amount for a parking permit from next year: residents currently pay £45.50 a year for their permit. They will pay £138.90 next year, still less than other vehicle owners and “only 38p a day”, says the council.

Camden’s environment chief Councillor Adam Harrison said: “We are consulting the public on our current parking schemes to further promote the use of cleaner and more carbon-efficient vehicles, improve access for older and disabled residents, school children and parents, support low-income residents and small businesses, and looking to use kerbside space in Camden in new, greener ways.

“We need to seize every opportunity we can to make Camden a more sustainable, carbon-neutral borough. I therefore urge everyone – whether they regularly use a motor vehicle or not – to complete the consultation.”

The plans have split opinion across the borough, with some celebrating the move to “discourage car use”, but with critics once again declaring the announcement the latest stage in a “war on motorists”.

Speaking to the New Journal this week, resident David Reed said: “My initial stance is that the more that is done to discourage car use, and soon, the better. Apart from tradespeople [and] delivery trucks… most vehicle use is simply for the convenience of those using them, at the expense of everybody else.”

He said London has an “amazing network of public transport”, adding: “As a former car owner, I even question the ‘convenience’ of car use. I rarely used my car in central London in the decades I had one: parking was always difficult and expensive, and, quite simply, you can’t enjoy a night out when using a car.”

Meanwhile, car owner Marcia MacLeod, 74, said: “I believe if a car is Ulez compliant, its owner should not be charged for permits according to its emissions… In addition, those of us with cars but very low mileage… do not create the same emissions as someone who uses their car much more frequently. Why should we be treated the same?”
“I am so against Camden Council’s war on motorists – because that is what [they] are waging.”

She said of her message to the council: “You should be looking at what is right for all your residents and visitors, not just those who don’t have or want cars.”

According to the Town Hall, any money raised will go towards maintaining roads and improving public transport for vulnerable residents. The Town Hall says 64 per cent of households in the borough do not own a car, meaning the majority of residents will be unaffected by the cost rises.