Hailed as an environmental asset and revered for its wide net, London's Congestion Charge Zone continues to incite controversy today as it did on its debut five years ago.
Few topics have so polarised Londoners. Advocates are fast to point to reduced emissions, faster journeys around the capital and a shift towards a greater use of public transport.
Its critics are equally quick to question whether it has eased congestion: driving around the city centre remains an exercise in patience during peak hours. The fact that revenue from the levy has tended to be ploughed into buses rather than road improvement has also irked some.
A promise late last month to scale back the zone by nearly half has fuelled this debate. A somewhat rushed decision to widen the zone early last year to include the residential area of west London has been reversed after fierce protests.
The issue became a focal point of the mayoral election in May. New mayor Boris Johnson promised to consult on the topic and, late last month, announced a dramatic U-turn on the extension barely a year into its operation.
It is a move guaranteed to win him public support, but has done little to dispel controversy. Resident groups who battled against the extension are happy. Although it will not come into effect until 2010, they claim paring back the zone will bring traffic back to small firms and retailers in the area.
