A London borough gets a new scheme to balm the environmental owes. The scheme requires drivers to pay for parking permits of the residents in accordance with the level of the emissions produced by their cars. It has come into force in the region.
So, if you are residing at Richmond, south-west London and own a vehicle that emits high carbon dioxide, from now, you will have to pay up to three times the normal residential parking fees! So, be aware and get your car serviced regularly, which means — a family with two such cars could pay up to £750 a year!
But, it is raising protests among many residents. According to opponents, the scheme contradicts the parking permit system as it was designed to protect residents. In a survey by the council, 47% of the residents voted for and 39% voted against the scheme. The remainders were undecided.
Happy to be putting this ‘ground-breaking’ scheme (as he defines) in place, Richmond council leader Serge Lourie said,
We only made our decision to go ahead with the principle of the scheme at the end of January after we had consulted local residents and the proposals had been debated by a number of council committees.
