Charge roll-out expected
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• Hauliers have no choice but to pay congestion charges if they are to carry out work in the zone, warns Mary Bonar, head of transport at solicitors Nabarro Nathanson.
She told CMthat powers to introduce congestion charging were given to the Mayor under the Greater London Authority Act and swiftly extended to non-metropolitan local transport authorities by the Transport Act 2000.
Bonar says that the introduction of congestion charging is not unexpected and there has been a long consultation period, during which hauliers had the opportunity to respond to the plans through user groups such as the ETA and RNA. She warns that many local authorities will be watching to see how successful the scheme is in the capital, before considering whether to introduce it in their own boroughs.
Bonar adds that the advantage for local authorities is that legislation allows them to keep proceeds from charging for the first ten years providing it is invested in transport, such as improving bus lanes and other public transport initiatives,