My piece published by the Daily Express:
Let this sink in! It was recently revealed that Sadiq Khan has gained £8.8 million from ULEZ fines in six weeks. This was made up of 97,786 fines, which do not include those who refuse to pay up.
Many of the ULEZ fines are paid by the poorest drivers. One Londoner, on LBC told Khan “ULEZ has taken all my money. Now I don’t have anything’, another said she must ‘wait for pay day just to buy milk”.
As I predicted, Khan’s response was to refer to his ULEZ scrappage scheme, which encourages purchasing a new car to prevent fines, but that only gives a Londoner just £2,000. Last year, according to Auto Trader data, the average cost of a diesel engine car that is ULEZ compliant is £11,996 more expensive than a non-compliant model at £7,995.
Not only is Khan taxing the poorest in London, he’s also nearly making it impossible to drive in London.
It was put to me in a recent interview that London is the slowest city in the world according to traffic moving, and the average speed in London is seven miles per hour.
When out and about in Uxbridge and South Ruislip, I spoke to a black cab driver who told me he can barely move in London due to the cycle lanes Khan put up. Passengers at times have to leave the cab, meaning the cab stays in the traffic, and therefore cut the cab driver’s fare.
That’s not the first time black cab drivers have been annoyed at Khan.
It pains me to say it, but UBER drivers are slowly taking over London, making black cabs almost invisible. Khan’s allegiance is with UBERs, especially as he now backs plans to no longer require proof UBER drivers can speak English.
UBER drivers lack training but possess London’s streets. Meanwhile trained black cab drivers, part of the history and heritage of London streets, are stuck in a queue and probably earn no more than £20 a day on a few rides.
Black cab drivers need to be heard. Especially the ones that drive into central London from the suburbs, such as the resident I spoke to from Uxbridge and South Ruislip.
To ensure black drivers get a say, and to ensure traffic is reduced in London, Susan Hall needs to win the Mayoral Election on May 2 this year.
Susan Hall will remove ULEZ on day one of her Mayoralty, and that will solve a lot of the issues Londoner’s face, which is why she has my vote. I hope she has yours.
