Bexley Council’s system for putting forward motions at meetings has been described as ‘not working’ after a call for the ULEZ expansion to be stopped was finally put in front of councillors 14 months after the charge was rolled out to all of London.
Conservative Councillor Cameron Smith, who put forward the proposal, said he originally tabled the motion two and a half years ago, but due to such a limited time being offered to discuss motions at the monthly full council meeting, it had taken that long to make it to the table.
The topic was discussed at a Bexley Council meeting on November 6. A rule in the council’s constitution only allows 30 minutes for motions to be considered at full council meetings. Any motions not reached within that time are then automatically deferred to the next meeting.
Labour Councillor Stefano Borella said: “That motion is already out of date and I understand Cllr Cameron Smith’s frustration about that being out of date which just shows our motions don’t work here.”
The motion was reworded as a result and instead asked for the Mayor of London to abandon plans to toll the Blackwall Tunnel. Transport for London (TfL) revealed provisional charges for using the Silvertown and Blackwall tunnels in July this year. The fees range from £1.50 to £4 for car users depending on whether they use the tunnels during rush hour on weekdays, and would be in place from 6am to 10am northbound and 4pm to 7pm southbound.
Cllr Smith said: “I think we have to say enough is enough of road user charging, and since ULEZ, we have seen the Blackwall Tunnel. There is a question about when the next tightening of the restrictions is in order to bring more people into the charge.”
The petition also said the authority was fearful of further charges on road users following the ULEZ expansion last year. Conservative Councillor Rags Sandhu said at the meeting that he knew a Kent plumber who had decided to stop doing jobs in Bexley and Greenwich as his van was not ULEZ compliant. He added that another resident with a cleaning company had to sell his van as it was not compatible with the scheme.
Cllr Sandhu said: “He said [he is] £26,000 down because he’s got a finance contract on his new van… These independent businesses that we’ve got right the way across the borough are hugely being impacted.”
Cllr Borella put forward an amendment to the original motion, noting that the ULEZ expansion was done in an effort to improve air quality and that the plan to toll the Blackwall Tunnel was started by former Mayor of London Boris Johnson. He also criticised Bexley Council for spending over £147,000 on a failed legal challenge against the ULEZ expansion last year alongside Surrey County Council and London authorities Bromley, Harrow and Hillingdon.
He added: “We’ve seen the disgraceful scenes of the blade runners going around this borough committing criminal acts on infrastructure but not just TfL’s infrastructure. It also impacts the council’s infrastructure.”
The council voted to reject the Labour Group amendment at the meeting, with the original motion, simply calling for the Blackwall Tunell toll to be scrapped, being passed. Christina Calderato, Director of Strategy at TfL, said the Silvertown Tunnel was due to open in 2025 and would help deliver quicker, more reliable journeys in East London by easing congestion and making journeys up to 20 minutes faster.
Ms Calderato told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “The proximity of the Silvertown and Blackwall tunnels has meant that, ever since the plans were first conceived in 2012, we have been clear that both need to be charged to ensure that traffic levels do not increase as a result of drivers seeking to use the uncharged crossing.”
The director said an eight-week consultation on the proposed charges for the tunnels was carried out this year. She said this was done to reduce congestion in the area around the Blackwall Tunnel while also supporting local residents on low income, small businesses, sole traders and local charities with exemptions to the tolls.
She added: “The consultation closed on September 3, and we are now assessing the responses ahead of presenting our recommendation for the final proposed charges, discounts and exemptions to the TfL Board for their consideration and approval before the end of the year.”
