Don’t Drive in Central London!
Wednesday May 10, 2006
Driving in central London is not recommended. Why would you need to drive in, as we have a great public transport system? Driving in central London incurs a Congestion Charge (currently £8 a day). And then you've got to find somewhere to park... And then you've got to pay for parking (not cheap, I promise you). So, really, don't drive in. Learn more about congestion charging.
Image: © Transport for London 2005
Image: © Transport for London 2005
If you do not live in London, but are going to visit the centre, It is a great idea to drive.
Many people who go into the centre of London are coming from the counties and it is impractical and inconvenient to switch from car to public transport once they get into the city. Moreover, business travellers often expense parking and congestion charges. Driving is great; it is quicker, easier and much more comfortable. Depending on your company car arrangement, it is usually cheaper to drive than to use public transport.
And the tube/busses cost a lot, you have to go quite far out to get cheap parking, so whatever you save on parking the car, you lose on travelling the remainder of your journey by tube. Factor in the time you waste transferring and the extra length of the journey on the public transport and it’s a no brainer: the car is the clear winner.
Plus the car is comfortable, private, spacious, it is always the correct temperature, it goes exactly where you want to go and it carries you bag/briefcase for you. As opposed to public transport, which is uncomfortable, slow, follows the wrong route, smells, is packed and full of kids playing tasteless music on their mobile phones.
That said, the public transport system does serve to get people too ignorant to figure this out off the road, so it takes us less time to reach the office, by car.
I have to disagree. Driving into central London is selfish as it presumes you and your ‘one person-one car’ is more important than all the people using public transport. It also increases pollution and this was part of the reason for the congestion charging in the first place. Parking in central London is made difficult on purpose – we don’t want people driving in!
Taxis are efficient if you want some luxury and I honestly believe most people coming to London do not drive here.
It’s really disheartening to hear these views. I hope most visitors to London are willing to travel the way Londoners do and not bring their cars into the crowded city center.