...By Jack Sylva for TDPel Media.
Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has criticized London’s current mayor, Sadiq Khan, for the city’s low emission zone (ULEZ) expansion.
Johnson claimed that the ULEZ has nothing to do with improving air quality and is instead designed to fill a black hole in Transport for London’s finances.
The ULEZ will expand on August 29, and it will impose a daily charge of £12.50 on non-compliant cars in all of London’s boroughs.
Khan has claimed that the scheme will save lives since 4,000 Londoners die from air pollution each year.
Mr. Johnson accused Khan of misleading the public about the scheme’s health benefits, claiming that “Khan’s catastrophic mismanagement of TfL finances” is behind the scheme.
He added that “This scheme was never intended for outer London.
Khan must be stopped.”
Protesters Campaign Against the Scheme’s Expansion
The criticism comes as hundreds of protesters took to the streets over the weekend in hi-viz jackets to campaign against the expanded ULEZ scheme.
They waved placards reading “Free Our Streets” in Trafalgar Square.
The scheme is based on figures from Imperial College London modelling, which states that pollution accounts for 70,200 life years lost each year, equivalent to 4,100 deaths.
However, campaign group Together calculated that pollution reduces each Londoner’s life by an average of 68 hours per year, while life expectancy increases by an average of 73 days a year.
Commentary
Boris Johnson’s criticism of Sadiq Khan’s ULEZ scheme has brought the issue of air pollution in London back into the spotlight.
Johnson’s claim that the scheme has nothing to do with improving air quality but is a tool to fill a black hole in Transport for London’s finances has caused a stir.
However, Khan’s claims that the scheme will save lives by reducing air pollution are backed up by research from Imperial College London.
The expanding ULEZ has also drawn criticism from campaigners who argue that it unfairly targets working-class drivers.
The debate on the ULEZ expansion’s effectiveness in improving air quality while balancing the costs to the public and transport industry is ongoing.
