Infographic: Does Congestion Charging Work?
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Congestion charging is one of the most debatable tools that governments have used to alleviate gridlock traffic. Cities from London to Stockholm and Singapore to Milan have experimented with such pricing schemes, but do they work?
Congestion charging is one of the most debatable tools that governments have used to alleviate gridlock traffic. Cities from London to Stockholm and Singapore to Milan have experimented with such pricing schemes, but do they work?
In August 2007, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg made an announcement that was, at the time, thought to be the beginning of a congestion pricing programme for the city. “Congestion throughout New York City is clogging our streets, polluting our air and restricting our economy,” Bloomberg said, “and the time to do something about it is now.”
Under Bloomberg’s ambitious plan to improve the city’s future environmental sustainability while planning for population and car growth, an $8 daily levy (and $21 for trucks) would be imposed on motorists driving into lower Manhattan. But five months later, in January 2008, interest in the proposal died as it was never put to a vote on the Assembly.
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In June 2013, congestion charging saw a revival in the U.S. when San Francisco city planners announced they were studying a plan to charge drivers entering or leaving downtown. Tilly Chang, deputy planning director at the San Francisco County Transportation Authority, said something more is needed to drastically slow the growth of traffic flooding into the centre.
“We’re going to be faced with severe congestion at some point. We’re not able to say exactly when, but it’s certainly within the next, I’d say, 10 years. And if we don’t move decisively now, it might even be sooner than that,” said Chang.
Congestion pricing is already in place in cities such as Singapore, London, Stockholm and Milan – and here’s what the research shows about how effective it is.
via Car Finance 24/7
