Anyone affected by the new expanded ULEZ zone and how do you feel about it?

[BoldonLad]

Off topic but everytime i see the bins out now, I'm reminded how we put convenience over almost everything.
They're full of the chargeable carrier bags filled with rubbish.
The cheap ones were thin and made ideal rubbish bags and in a sense, were reused, the chargeable ones are thick, possibly 4 times as much plastic...so they've (the government/ supermarkets etc) just increased the problem by removing the thin ones.
People.... at both ends of the scale either don't think out the scenario...or just can't be bothered.
Its quite shocking how lazy people are becoming

In the area I live (a supposedly deprived area), the hedgerows were once festooned with thin, single use, free, carrier bags, now, they are festooned with "bags for life", at 20p a go, plus, of course a plentiful supply of (covid) face-masks.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

Why can’t you do that trip with a cargo bike? You can be there and back in 40 mins, plus time in B&Q.

A) I don't have one, B) It would require a health/fitness level above mine,

I do understand what you are getting at, but for some it's not possible.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

I also think that very few people view bikes as a viable mode of transport due to the time / hassle / perceived danger involved.. again potentially moreso out in the sticks.

A journey of 5 miles or less is still the same distance whether it rural or urban. People are using a 2 ton vehicle as a shopping trolley and / or a rain coat. Sure some journeys the car might be the best choice for those kind of journeys, but nowhere near 95% of them. If people just used their cars when they need to transport bulky, heavy and / or awkward items for those distances they wouldn’t comprise 95% of all traffic out there.

You are right that they have this perception about short journeys on foot or by bike that simply don’t match reality. There’s also the perception you have to be fit, which isn’t true at all.

 

[oldwheels]

I live in a small town where the problem of congestion arises in the summer caused by tourists and if I have to shop I can get out and back home before they have finished their breakfasts.
I cannot walk far so need to use a car and in addition I live at the top of a pretty steep hill. Five years ago I could manage on foot but not now.
If charging was ever introduced I would have no access to shopping or probably even the health centre.
Food delivery is not likely as I tried it once during the pandemic and most vegetables ended in the compost bin as they were such poor quality. I would never have bought them.
The problem lies in large conurbations which we sometimes have to visit and if a charge was introduced in say Paisley I could not get to the hospital without incurring charges.
My car according to the reg no would not be compliant.

 

[CXRAndy]

There is a nice line in the FT this weekend referring to people getting flashy cars on PCP.

"Buying things they don't need, at prices they can't afford"

Something like >90% of all new cars bought are either lease or some PCP arrangement.

 

[Baldy]

True, but, in those days, men where men.

No, in those days, men had bad backs.

 

[wafter]

A journey of 5 miles or less is still the same distance whether it rural or urban. People are using a 2 ton vehicle as a shopping trolley and / or a rain coat. Sure some journeys the car might be the best choice for those kind of journeys, but nowhere near 95% of them. If people just used their cars when they need to transport bulky, heavy and / or awkward items for those distances they wouldn’t comprise 95% of all traffic out there.

You are right that they have this perception about short journeys on foot or by bike that simply don’t match reality. There’s also the perception you have to be fit, which isn’t true at all.

It's the same distance, however in an urban context it's likely to have much better public transport provision; plus potentially heavier traffic which will skew the journey time in favour of the non-car-driver. Even as an avid cyclist who'll take the bike wherever possible, 5 miles through urban streets seems far more paletable than the same distance through unlit country roads.

Don't get me wrong - idealogically I'm 100 percent onboard with your postion; sadly however in the real world it's not so clear-cut for the most sympathetic of us; let alone the muppets who'd not be seen dead in anything other than their cosumptive debt-box..

It would be interesting to get some more granularity to the day; I suspect for the sake of the headline figures you quote, the peak of the bell curve of vehicle use is probably just below 5 miles.. Maybe the efforts of the cycling-massive might be better focussed on journeys of perhaps less than two miles; where walking or riding is a potentially a much more viable and less intimidating proposition for many 👍

 

[Chislenko]

Excuse my ignorance but are the ULEZ and the Congestion Charge two different things ?

Not that I plan on going to London but I put my reg no into the ULEZ website and it said fine, no charge but £15.00 congestion charge!

Do people have to pay both then?

 

[Dogtrousers]

I live inside the S circular so I'm in ULEZ, or more strictly the original ULEZ. I sold off my klunky disintegrating non-compliant diesel in anticipation.

Not far from where I live is where Ella Kissi-Debrah lived (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-responds-to-coroner-after-ella-kissi-debrah-inquest). And I ride my bike in this area too.

I'm all for it.

 

[Dogtrousers]

Excuse my ignorance but are the ULEZ and the Congestion Charge two different things ?

Not that I plan on going to London but I put my reg no into the ULEZ website and it said fine, no charge but £15.00 congestion charge!

Do people have to pay both then?

Yes they are entirely different things, covering different zones. If your vehicle is compliant there is no ULEZ charge. If you insist on driving a non-compliant vehicle in the congestion zone at chargeable times then you would have to pay both. And you probably need your head looking at too.

In all the time the congestion charge has existed (must be coming on for 20 years) I've had to pay it ... once.

The congestion charge just applies to the central area where no-one in their right mind ever takes a car anyway, unless they live there.

If you're really keen to pay out as much as possible you could also drive in a bus lane, which will attract another FPN on top of the one for non ULEZ compliance. You could even have a go at getting a speeding ticket. But I think the opportunities to do that would be limited.

 

[icowden]

It seems there will not be an option to pay In advance. If you enter driving an non-compliant vehicle it seems you get a fixed penalty notification, I assume to your registered address.

There isn't an option to pay at all. You just aren't allowed in with a non LEZ compliant vehicle. That's it. The exemptions are:
Vehicles for people with disabilities, historic vehicles, emergency vehicles, military vehicles and showman's vehicles.

Expect an increase in the purchase of clown cars, vintage cars and APCs !!

 

[Dogtrousers]

Off topic but everytime i see the bins out now, I'm reminded how we put convenience over almost everything.
They're full of the chargeable carrier bags filled with rubbish.
The cheap ones were thin and made ideal rubbish bags and in a sense, were reused, the chargeable ones are thick, possibly 4 times as much plastic...so they've (the government/ supermarkets etc) just increased the problem by removing the thin ones.
People.... at both ends of the scale either don't think out the scenario...or just can't be bothered.
Its quite shocking how lazy people are becoming

I'm just curious how you know this. Where I live the refuse bins are dark grey and you can't see what's in them. Do you have transparent bins round your way? Or do you dash out and peek inside other people's bins on bin day?

 

[Alex321]

I'm just curious how you know this. Where I live the refuse bins are dark grey and you can't see what's in them. Do you have transparent bins round your way? Or do you dash out and peek inside other people's bins on bin day?

Yes, where I live I wouldn't have a clue what s in the rubbish either.

Our recycling all goes in canvas bags (three different colours depending on what it is) or caddies for glass and for food waste. Then general rubbish is just in black bags (up to two per household, collected every other week). I'd have to be going round, picking up other people's black bags and opening them to have any idea what people are throwing out.

But we would only be putting re-usable carrier bags in there if they are actually falling apart. We very rarely use them anyhow though, because we still have the blue boxes from the experiment Tesco tried a few (20+ !) years ago, and we normally use those for our supermarket shopping.

 

[Chislenko]

Yes they are entirely different things, covering different zones. If your vehicle is compliant there is no ULEZ charge. If you insist on driving a non-compliant vehicle in the congestion zone at chargeable times then you would have to pay both. And you probably need your head looking at too.

In all the time the congestion charge has existed (must be coming on for 20 years) I've had to pay it ... once.

The congestion charge just applies to the central area where no-one in their right mind ever takes a car anyway, unless they live there.

If you're really keen to pay out as much as possible you could also drive in a bus lane, which will attract another FPN on top of the one for non ULEZ compliance. You could even have a go at getting a speeding ticket. But I think the opportunities to do that would be limited.

Thanks for that. Presumably government cars (e.g. The Prime Minister's Car etc) are exempt?

 

[Alex321]

Thanks for that. Presumably government cars (e.g. The Prime Minister's Car etc) are exempt?

Most modern cars are exempt from the ULEZ charge, and I would expect them to be pretty modern.

Whether they pay the congestion charge, I don't know.