Airport toll for drivers?
3:27pm Wednesday 23rd January 2002
MOTORISTS could be charged £5 to drive into Heathrow Airport under new plans being put forward by Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone.
The congestion charging scheme, contained within a minuted meeting of the Greater London Authority (GLA), is seen as a way of raising millions of pounds for key transport projects in the capital.
But while Mr Livingstone claims to have the support of both British Airways and the British Airports Authority, the proposal has been criticised by the Conservative GLA member for Ealing and Hillingdon, Richard Barnes, who said it would 'hammer Londoners with extra taxes'.
In a statement to GLA members, Mr Livingstone said: "The idea I have in mind is a congestion charge that would absolutely follow the boundary of the airport, thus having no effect on passing traffic only traffic that turns in."
If approved, all staff working at Heathrow and all firms supplying the airport would be exempt. But while environmentalists may welcome the scheme, motorists are likely to feel aggrieved.