00:00Electric vehicle drivers in central London are now having to pay the capital's congestion charge
00:07for the first time after changes came in at the start of the new year. Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan confirmed
00:13in November that EVs would lose their exemption from the fee from the start of 2026. The regular
00:20daily congestion charge for non-electrified vehicles has also risen from £15 to £18 as well.
00:26The congestion charge introduced in 2003 covers an area of central London between 7am and 6pm on
00:34weekdays and between 12pm and 6pm on weekends. Pure battery-powered EVs had previously been eligible
00:42for a 100% discount. Electric cars are now eligible for just a 25% discount if registered for autopay,
00:49reducing the fee to £13.50 per day. Transport for London had previously proposed to
00:55scrap the electric vehicle exemption entirely. It said without changes, over 2,000 more vehicles
01:02would use the congestion charging zone on an average weekday this year, increasing congestion
01:07and undermining the current scheme. The autopay discounts for electric vehicles are due to be
01:12reduced further in 2030 to 12.5% for electric cars and to 25% for electric vans, HGVs, light
01:21quadricycles and heavy quadricycles available for EVs.
01:26of the
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