Proposed congestion charge

[pj]

The proposed £5 congestion charge for Cambridge seems to include the Abbey Stadium. Being in force until 7pm on weekdays could be quite an issue for people who like to arrive reasonably early for midweek matches. Maybe one solution would be to move them to 8pm or even later kick offs, but there is very likely to be quite an effect on our attendances.

Greatly improved Public transport such as Park and ride may help but this is not suitable for everyone

Obviously there are much bigger issues surrounding this, such as being the final nail in the coffin for shops in Cambridge, as people will just go elsewhere to other cities that do not have such charges.

[foolhandy]

I'd be happier to use the Park & Ride if they ran for the return trip too...

[Andrewlang]

If it works to achieve its undoubted benefits of reducing pollution, making roads safer, making cities more attractive for bikes/pedestrians and raising revenue then I'm all for it.

The theory is that business already suffer as a result of traffic congestion and that by reducing travel time by an estimated 30% you'll offset any negative impact from the charge. I'm too cynical to believe that until I see it myself, same with a possible improvement in bus services. We'll see I guess.

Andrew

[cambsno]

Its the most stupid idea - up there with Newport signing Azeez.

Its fine if you live and work in the city, but many live outside of the city in small villages. Bus services are unreliable, slow and expensive - not to mention infrequent.

It will kill the city centre, remember replacing the cars of shoppers would mean loads more buses needed. And how someone is supposed to go to B&Q without using a car is beyond me. It will kill retail and many jobs along with it.

It would make midweek games unviable for me as the traffic at 7pm would be a nightmare as people wait until its free! I would then need to walk from the ground to the bus station and IIRC would be hit and miss if I get the bus or need to wait half an hour. So it would take a 20 min or so journey to well over an hour.

There also is not, generally, a congestion problem. If there is its normally roads closures or accidents that cause it. How will plumbers and such like get around, they will simply add it to my bill! So we get this tax in multiple ways.

[MartinL]

Personally I’ve found buses to and from Cambourne pretty good and have occasionally used them to travel to work. The downside is, instead of being able to get to work in about 20 minutes (on s motorbike- don’t know if they would be charged) I have to get the 6.50 bus and then one from the city centre to get to work on time on Addenbrookes site. Later bus hits traffic and I can’t make it to work by 830.
So instead of 40 minutes travelling time I would be increasing my commuting to about 3 hours. Stuff that.
Anyone without such a regular bus service or works hours outside of buses running has no choice but to drive.
Being able to afford to live near to your place of work is a luxury many don’t have these days.

[imp566]

Sept 3, 2022 20:38:47 GMT MartinL said:

Personally I’ve found buses to and from Cambourne pretty good and have occasionally used them to travel to work. The downside is, instead of being able to get to work in about 20 minutes (on s motorbike- don’t know if they would be charged) I have to get the 6.50 bus and then one from the city centre to get to work on time on Addenbrookes site. Later bus hits traffic and I can’t make it to work by 830.
So instead of 40 minutes travelling time I would be increasing my commuting to about 3 hours. Stuff that.
Anyone without such a regular bus service or works hours outside of buses running has no choice but to drive.
Being able to afford to live near to your place of work is a luxury many don’t have these days.

Its a very fair point. To encourage more people to use public transport, it needs to be more reliable and convenient.

You are lucky that there is a service that could allow you to travel to work, albeit not very conveniently. I know of many in small villages who have no bus service at all, so it is an absolute no go for them.

[Mark Peters’ Bonce of Power]

It doesn’t have to be a terrible thing, if implemented in the right way, (which I sincerely doubt) which means putting other things right first. Otherwise without decent alternative options for people to go about their business without a car, it’s just a revenue raising gambit.

Firstly, whatever the proposed radius around the city, obviously the P&R sites have to be outside. Also make the P&R free and increase frequency/capacity of busses, if you really want more and more people to see it as a viable alternative to driving. Bus services as a whole in and out of surrounding villages in general will also need to become cheaper and more frequent. Then I’d argue there need to be exemptions for those that really don’t have much choice, the disabled, tradespeople and delivery drivers and the like who quite literally can’t go about their business without a vehicle, otherwise the cost will just be passed onto the consumer.

Finally and for the longer term, town planning decisions on where things go will need a massive long term overhaul and general rethink. Take the retail parks and supermarkets along Newmarket road for example, I don’t really think it’s realistic to expect people to do a weekly shop for a family of five by bus and you really can’t go to B&Q for garden furniture, or Curry’s for a new fridge or washing machine without a vehicle. Once proper alternatives are in place, then you can look at telling people to use public transport instead and make a case for whether it’s reasonable to charge people for the right to drive into the city.

[Jerry1971]

The congestion tax (which is simply what it is, a tax) is being planned by an unelected Quango in the form of the Greater Cambridgeshire Partnership - GCP, who have so far spaffed away more than £130m of public money on consultants, skewed consultations and very little delivery aside from a few white lines painted at vast cost here and there.

We should be clear that the plans call for a 7 day per week charge, so no avoiding it for Saturday trips to the Abbey, or, if you live in the zone as I do no avoiding it for a trip out of the zone to see us play away for example. It is a monstrous proposal which will greatly fuel social inequality in the City and surrounds. I can afford a fiver to drive, but a great many cannot and it is them who will be hit the hardest, alongside all of the businesses, shops and organisations such as CUFC who will feel the loss of income from the day the congestion tax is introduced as those without the means or less committed are put off by additional cost. We need to stop this, and to do so there is a petition up and running already - here is the link:

chng.it/sX2DBNHk

[Tom Shaw's Fist of Rage]

Similar issue in Manchester where central government have given local government little option but to put in place unpopular policies and take the flack for it.