London Traffic Is Worst Since 2002
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
London — London’s traffic delays are the worst since 2002 as utility companies’ roadwork causes tie-ups that are undermining the city’s congestion charge on drivers.
Delays in the zone averaged 2.3 minutes per 0.6 miles between January and April this year, compared with 2.5 minutes in 2002, the year before the charge was introduced, Transport for London said in a report published yesterday. The number of vehicles entering the zone this year fell by 21%, or 70,000, compared with 2002.
A former mayor, Ken Livingstone, introduced the congestion charge, now $15.60 a day, on drivers who enter central London in an effort to reduce road delays in the British capital and to raise cash for public transportation. The current mayor, Boris Johnson, yesterday promised a “comprehensive” plan to ease tie-ups, including retiming traffic lights and fining utility companies.
