Congestion Charging and ULEZ in London

[Michel]

One year on from the expansion of London’s ultra-low emission zone (ULEZ), analysis by the RAC suggests drivers of non-compliant vehicles paid almost £100 million to Transport for London (TfL).

Good, it might have made the stinking, polluted hole a slightly nicer place to visit!

[CitroJim]

Old London Town did indeed seem a bit fresher and less fragrant when I passed through recently...

Waterloo station especially...

[mickthemaverick]

Picking up the POTD subject and Gibbo's post:

The reality is that if you own an average non compliant car and live in the zone it will cost you £12.50 a day to use it. Supposing you use it 5 days out of seven that is £62.50 a week or £250 a month which is £50ish more than the monthly payment on an MG EV on PCP. So sell/scrap (scrappage scheme £2k - more than some old bangers are worth) your old car for the deposit and you can keep motoring. True you are still spending out £250 a month more than you were but at least you'll end up with an asset to show for it rather than bulging council coffers to be spent on more cameras and big brother stuff!!

[GiveMeABreak]

I disagree with that Mick on the basis that the deposit alone for the cheapest MG EV on PCP is over £9,000! Then there's the monthly £299 over 4 years = £14,352, then only if you want to keep it at the end of the 4 years will you have to cough up another £11,497.50 in order to own it, where it becomes an asset, otherwise you return it and have paid out nearly £24k for nothing.

So you'll have ended up paying £36,618.17 according to their calculations on a vehicle that will have probably lost over half its value in that time. Plus you are limited to 8,000 miles a year before a 14.9 excess mileage charge.

These PCP contracts are pure money grabbers in IMO.

I think the issue is that if the masses in London that are going to be hit the hardest actually had £9,000 for a deposit, they'd rather put it towards a Euro 6.2+ second hand ICE vehicle and own it from the start.

[Michel]

Or they could spend £500 on a runabout that's ULEZ compliant - my neighbour's petrol 2003 Polo 1.4 is compliant, their 2012 Audi A6 TDi is not. To be compliant doesn't necessitate buying a brand new vehicle. My little 2014 Punto is compliant. The Picasso HDI wasn't so, it's had to go. My Suzuki cost just under £4k.

[GiveMeABreak]

Yes, that too - Even the new Fiat Topolino is only about €7k - basically identical to the Citroen Ami avec some styling changes, coming to the UK in 2024.

[mickthemaverick]

Thanks chaps! Here I stand head in hand.........................For some reason it didn't occur to me to go down the euro compliant banger route. For those with a non compliant banger worth £500 they can scrap it for £2000, buy a £1200 pound compliant ICE and have a week in Spain on the profit!! My head clearly not with it this morning!