A Labour council is planning to increase parking rates for petrol and diesel cars, while keeping them the same for electric vehicles (EVs).
Reading has been accused of using “Mafia-like tactics” to double the hourly on-street parking charges for vehicles with the highest emissions.
High-pollution vehicles may have to pay £6 per hour, whereas fees for EVs and cars with carbon dioxide emissions lower than 151g/km will remain £3. Any vehicle above 151g/km will face fees based on a sliding scale.
Brian MacDowell, director of the Alliance of British Drivers pressure group, said the council is “preying” on and “penalising” lower-income people.
He told The Telegraph: “It’s an underhanded tax on people’s travel. It smacks of Mafia-like tactics, preying on those whose incomes are limited and unfairly penalising them for choosing a form of motive power.
“Parking rates should be a blanket charge. There should be no difference between vehicles. Emissions are regulated by the MOT test, and as long as you pass, your vehicle is safe to use. There is no justification whatsoever for councils to charge you more.”
Reading Borough Council’s policy committee is expected to approve the proposals, which would generate an extra £330,000 a year, on Monday. The council hopes to incentivise people to be more environmentally friendly.
The doubled charges will apply to on-street and residential parking permits as the council is not yet able to enforce them at off-street car parks.
Residential parking permits in Reading currently cost £48 a year, and this will remain the same for EVs and the least polluting vehicles. However, diesel cars with emissions higher than 255g/km will rack up a bill of £108.
The new fees must be payed through the RingGo app as it can work out the pollution levels of vehicles by accessing DVLA records. Nearly 90% of Reading’s RingGo users own petrol or diesel cars, and only 6% own ulta-low emission vehicles.
Labour councillor John Ennis said: “Petrol and diesel vehicles emit pollution which can be particularly damaging to vulnerable individuals such as children, older people and individuals with lung and heart conditions.
“We know that transport accounts for around 30pc of all carbon emissions nationally and the council is aiming to improve air quality in Reading by encouraging the use of low-emission vehicles, public transport, cycling and walking.”
A Reading Council spokesman said: “The MoT test ensures the level of pollutants emitted from a car’s exhaust are within legal limits. We want to go further and encourage motorists to drive vehicles which are low or no emission.
“Additional charges will not be in place for vehicles which do not reach the emission level of 151g/km which means there will no extra charge for many motorists.”
