Thread by @SW20Ed

It’s time for an #Edinburgh congestion charge.

Here’s why🧵

The planned 2006 £2/day charge to pass one of the boundaries would have raised £50mn a year had it been introduced.

By now, the city might have raised an extra £850mn to spend on public transport.

Possibly above a billion if adjusted for inflation.

Almost two decades later, Edinburgh has ambitious car km reduction targets backed (in principle, although sadly not in practice) by 4/5 council parties.

But without measures like a congestion charge to both cut traffic AND raise funds for public transport, those will be missed.

There is huge expansion across the Lothians - if everyone new drives, everyone loses (including drivers).

There’s now policy Mexican standoff

Waiting for public transport to magically improve…

…but ironically not going ahead with implementing behavioural change projects such as a congestion charges or workplace parking levy that make those improvements easier to fund and deliver!

Worse: parties blame someone else for lack of funding rather than using options open to them to create funding for things locally (all Govts do it)… leading to inaction.

Plus the issue of those above you wanting you not to rock the boat (SNP \ Lab 👀) lest you want a promotion.

So it’s time to get a congestion charge back on the agenda ahead of Council elections in 2027.

So we can change the question from how many cars can we move, to how many people can we move.

But the original scheme needs adapting for the 2020s. How?

How you might soften it:

Council residents to be exempt from crossing the outer boundary once per day (eg Queensferry, Kirkliston, Currie & Balerno residents)

Perhaps for postcodes within 2 miles of the boundary, your first trip across the outer ring might be free each day?

How might you soften it?

⚡️ Make it free or heavily discounted for fully electric vehicles

🚛 🚲 Delivery hubs to transfer to smaller last mile vehicles

♿️ As per the original scheme blue badge holders should be exempt.

How might you soften it:

🚗 All City Centre residents (within the inner boundary) exempt from inner boundary charges, perhaps zero emissions vehicle owners too? (Although London has just removed this).

💸 Discounts for non-Edinburgh EH postcode businesses or bulk buy discounts.

How might you harden it:

💶 Make the inner boundary significantly more expensive for most

🚗💨Outer = low emissions
🚗⚡️Inner = ultra or no emissions

✖️£2 flat fee is unfair. Have charge multipliers on emissions, mass (road wear) and pedestrian safety (see below)

How you might harden it:

🐀 Combine with a circulation plan - it was in the original plan to close off rat runs.

🚌 Apply it to buses to incentivise investment ⚡️

💶Charge every time it’s crossed, not just daily - maybe capped?

How might you harden it?

💸 Vary the price for peaks.

⏰ Make it 24/7

📈 increase it at least in line with inflation every year, ideally more.

🚙 historic vehicles to also be covered.

What could the price be?

In 2006, it was planned as a flat rate: £2

📈That would be roughly £3.30 now.

But cars (like people) have got bigger, especially electric ones since 2006.

Also some vehicles are much less polluting.

So important to recognise this in the charges.

We know the cost of a bus fare has risen much more than inflation. So have rail fares.

It’s needs to be at least as expensive as a bus day ticket - ideally more to change behaviours.

How much should the minimum charge be per day?

If you drive a small, efficient and safe vehicle then you pay less.

Or perhaps even nothing for the crossing into the charge zone the first time each day?

Or nothing at all?

But to make it fair and incentivise the right behaviours, there can be multipliers based on vehicle mass, size and pedestrian safety rating as well as emissions.

Drive a big, heavy, polluting car with a bad pedestrian safety rating? Fine, but you’ll pay for all the externalities

In London, it’s £15, but with additional charges if your vehicle isn’t #ULEZ compliant.

This seems to have driven many more vehicles to be converted to electric, much more quickly.

What about the politics.

An Edinburgh Labour Party up in the polls might say it wants to make the city much more equal, health and safer and fund public transport.

Rather than burning political capital on wee LTNs and fighting bike lane by bike lane, do something big instead?

If parties start thinking now about council elections in 2027 - they can put it on manifestos and stand on them. Then implement when they get into office.

Political will prob won’t be there, despite worldwide evidence from that politicians who invest in city sustainability are rewarded at the ballot box.

How long can a scheme that incentivises the right behaviours, raises funds AND helps delivers on stated policy be ignored?

#Edinburgh will be left behind without significant investment in public and active travel.

And to make that public and active travel as efficient as possible and to create safe, walkable and well connected places to live, work and play, it needs both funding and space.

End