The FTA has accused the London Assembly of “not thinking things through” after its Transport Committee called for a cut in LCV traffic in the capital, just months after it demanded a ban on HGV traffic in the rush hour.
In a letter to TfL transport commissioner Mike Brown, signed by chairwoman Valerie Shawcross, the committee suggested ways to reduce van traffic, including a reassessment of the congestion charge faced by LCVs.
It said that van traffic had risen in the city by 13% between 2012 and 2014, and that “while data is scarce, there is evidence that more LCVs travel in London during peak times compared with HGVs”. It also suggested how “an improved road charging system might reward more environmentally friendly LCVs with lower tariffs”.
Christopher Snelling, head of urban logistics policy at the FTA, said the assembly was contradicting itself, following its call for an HGV rush-hour ban.
“One day it’s banning HGVs, and the next it says it doesn’t like vans because there’s more of them on the road. But an HGV ban is the single thing you could do to increase the number of vans on our streets,” he said. “It’s the London Assembly not thinking things through.”
The letter made suggestions as to how LCV traffic could be reduced in London, including increased use of bicycles and motorbikes for final-mile delivery, more rail and water freight routes, and retiming and consolidating deliveries.
Snelling said: “There’s an assumption that freight vehicles are inefficient. We don’t know what that’s based on and we want to see more evidence.”
However, he added that there was potential behind the letter’s suggestion of reduced tariffs for environmentally friendly LCVs. “It will drive the uptake, but emissions are a different problem to congestion,” he said.
