TfL waste £ million on empty consultation

You might have seen this graphic on various posters around London recently and in full page ads in local papers. In early August the Mayor announced he was consulting on his variable CO2 based charging scheme for the Congestion Charge. This is of course an attempt by the Mayor to rebrand the failed Congestion Charge as a carbon tax and is effectively electioneering paid for by you and me.

As soon as I saw his announcement I thought “How much?”.

TfL provided the answer today, see their letter reproduced below (click to enlarge). To their credit TfL have managed to answer in slightly less than the 20 working days that the Mayor’s office treats as a minimum rather than a maximum. The consultation will cost £1.137 million. Most of the money is being spent on high profile billboards and newspaper ads whose real role is to present the Mayor as a green warrior rather than to find out what people really think.

In June 2006 a telephone poll costing £1,660 found that 64 per cent of Londoners think the most polluting cars should pay a higher congestion charge. The consultation asks only noddy questions. See full consultation questionnaire here. You might want to tell TfL what you think.