London Liberal Democrats have today reacted angrily to plans announced by TfL to increase London’s Congestion Charge, describing the news as “a hammer blow to already hard-pressed Londoners” and a “total betrayal” of those who did the right thing and invested in going green.
From 2 January 2026, the daily Congestion Charge will jump from £15 to £18 – a steep increase during a cost-of-living crisis that many will struggle to afford.
TfL will also slash incentives for electric vehicles, leaving individuals and businesses that heeded the call to go electric facing huge rises.
Hina Bokhari OBE AM, leader of the London Assembly Liberal Democrat Group, said, “In a cost-of-living crisis, a stonking 20% price hike will be a hammer blow to already hard-pressed Londoners. But the decision to slash discounts for electric vehicles is a total betrayal of those who did the right thing and invested in going green to help clean up London’s air.
Businesses, traders and families invested huge sums to decarbonise their vehicles because the Mayor told them to – and now he’s moving the goalposts and hitting them with huge charges. It’s not only unfair, it’s environmentally and economically illiterate.
“The Mayor is pulling the rug out from under London’s EV market at precisely the time we should be hitting the accelerator and helping everyone go electric. Just this summer, the Government launched a £650 million grant scheme to boost EV uptake – yet the Mayor is doing the opposite and removing incentives.
“It’s extremely short-sighted, it will cost Londoners, it will cost our environment, and it’s all the more disappointing coming so soon after the Mayor’s return from the UN climate conference in Rio. Perhaps he should have stayed longer – clearly the urgency of getting to net zero didn’t sink in.”
Luke Taylor, the Liberal Democrat MP for Sutton and Cheam added, “Phasing out concessions for electric vehicles makes no sense at all at a time when we still need to drive forward the transition to net zero. We shouldn’t be recouping costs by penalising those individuals and businesses who are doing their bit by going electric.
“It’s regrettable that the Mayor’s failure to get more funding for London means costs like this are now falling on the shoulders of working people in London, especially those in outer London where public transport is still too sparse.”
Sir Sadiq Khan said, “Keeping London moving by reducing congestion is vital for our city and for our economy.
“While the Congestion Charge has been a huge success since its introduction, we must ensure it stays fit for purpose, and sticking to the status quo would see around 2,200 more vehicles using the congestion charging zone on an average weekday next year.
“We must support Londoners and businesses to use more sustainable travel, so I’m pleased that substantial incentives will remain in place for Londoners who switch to cleaner vehicles, as we work to build a greener and better London for everyone.”
Christina Calderato, TfL’s director of strategy, said, “If we want to ensure that London remains a thriving city for everyone to enjoy, then it’s vital that traffic and congestion is kept under control and managed effectively.
“The changes to the Congestion Charging scheme play a key role in allowing us to do that, while striking a careful balance that enables drivers, businesses and other organisations to continue transitioning to cleaner vehicles and more sustainable forms of transport.”
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