Tolls proposed to part-fund new East London river crossings

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Tolls could be introduced on the Blackwall Tunnel in East London as a way of part-funding two new crossings of the Thames.
Transport for London has launched a consultation on providing additional river crossings in East London at two locations:

• a £600m Silvertown road tunnel, close to the Blackwall Tunnel, connecting the Greenwich peninsula with Silvertown
  
• a £150m ferry at Gallions Reach, linking Thamesmead and Beckton, or a new tunnel or bridge at the same location (also estimated to cost about £600m)
  

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Separate motorway duty ‘will create two classes of driver’

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MOTORISTS using Britain’s motorways and major trunk roads would pay a separate rate of road tax under a proposal being considered in Whitehall.

Government sources say officials are examining plans for an overhaul of vehicle excise duty (VED), which raises £6 billion a year.

One option would see the tax being split into two tiers. All motorists would pay the first levy, allowing them to drive on local roads and smaller A-roads.

Those wanting to use the country’s trunk-road network — consisting of all motorways and major A-roads — would pay a second flat-rate charge.

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Your car might be watched 24 hours in future

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In the future, you just might be charged for driving to the convenience store around the corner to get milk and bread.

The government is now testing new satellite-tracking technology that could develop into the next-generation electronic road pricing (ERP) system.

The System Evaluation Test (SET) began in May and "is a technological trial to help identify a technological solution most suited for Singapore", Channel NewsAsia reported.

So don't be alarmed if you come across four black cantilevers at Woodlands Avenue 12, the site where the SET testing is being carried out. You will also notice a range of surveillance cameras, reflectors and sensors set on the structures hanging over the road.

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Another One Bites the Dust ...

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Once the penny starts to drop for councillors across the country that motorists vote then any plans by other councils to adopt the workplace stealth tax will fade faster than an American golfer's dreams!

Bristol workplace parking scheme scrapped by city council

A plan for a workplace parking levy on businesses in Bristol has been scrapped, the BBC has learned.

Bristol City Council wanted to raise £27m by imposing the charge on parking spaces owned by companies.

Read the full article here

Previous reports

• Row over workplace parking levy
• 'Mixed reaction' to parking plan
• Work parking levy debate begins