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People living and working close to the Kent and London boundary have expressed anger at potential plans to widen the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) to the border.
Residents in Dartford and the town's MP have hit out at the proposed expansion, labelling it a "tax" on the poor and "an entry charge in all but name".
It comes after London mayor Sadiq Khan recently announced he had asked Transport for London (TfL) to consult on whether to expand the current ULEZ zone to Greater London in 2023.
If approved, it would mean drivers of non-compliant vehicles in Dartford driving over the border into neighbouring Bexley and Bromley would have to fork out £12.50 a day.
But on Dartford High Street various shoppers told KentOnline they would not be able to afford new, eco-friendly models should the charge commence.
Akeem Lamidi, 43, from Dartford, regularly uses his car to visit friends and family who live in different parts of London.
He does not think it is fair to expect families who can't afford to upgrade their car to pay.
"As a family we have to use the car to drive down there," he said. "They keep pushing it further and further."
On the projected expansion, he added: "It is completely wrong. Just because I can't afford a new car they think I should pay, it is wrong."
Hayley Bauer, who lives near Dartford's East Hill, believes the move is ill-timed amid planned bus service cuts and a lack of existing transport infrastructure.
The mum says many workers who will be stung by the charges cannot afford to upgrade their car and don't earn as much compared to Londoners.
She said: "I think it is a bad time to hit people with another tax if they are borderline.
"If they are just getting enough to live, some people are going to say I'm better off on Universal Credit."
Hayley added: "We are looking at the low-paid workforce that are going to suffer – including people with disabilities and their carers.
"It will only hit the people at the bottom of the pile and I don't find that fair."
Jay Perera, 65, also believes the proposal is ill-judged given the ongoing cost of living crisis.
The Bromley resident travels back and forth daily from a factory in Gravesend for work and is among those who would be impacted by the changes.
And whilst he agrees we all need to make more "environmentally-friendly" choices he said it is "much more expensive" with electric cars still inaccessible to many.
Jay, who lives in Chislehurst, said: "With the current crisis and all these things it should be the last thing because people are going to be bombarded with extra bills.
"Although it seems good for the environment perhaps we have to wait a few years for the dust to settle so people can afford it."
Dartford MP Gareth Johnson has voiced his concerns, labelling the move a stealth tax on Kent families, shoppers and workers.
The Tory had previously campaigned against similar proposals for the Greater London Congestion Charge, adding it would "hit the poor the hardest".
The proposed border tax, dubbed "Labour’s Dartford car tax", would have charged all vehicles registered outside of London a daily fee of £3.50, and up to £5.50 for the most polluting cars, every time they crossed the boundary.
But Mr Johnson believes the threat remains, adding: “I am delighted that the London mayor is scrapping the idea of a Greater London Boundary Charge, but the proposal he is considering instead is still going to have the same consequences for people living in Dartford.
“Those who do not own a vehicle compliant with the ULEZ standard now face having to pay a hefty daily fee or buy a new vehicle in time for the changes which could start as early as next year.
“Not only is the mayor taxing people who do not vote for him, he will end up making the poor poorer and punishing those on lower incomes who can least afford to buy a newer car to avoid the daily charge."
He added: "There are also no guarantees that the standard for meeting the ULEZ threshold will not be changed by the mayor in the future.
"He has not ruled out applying this charge to all petrol and diesel vehicles."
The government whip had previously tabled a failed private members' bill in Parliament in which he called the mayor's approach an "abuse of power" and asked that he be prevented from imposing charges for driving in Outer London.
Mr Johnson pointed out the problems at the border do not run along major routes but "straddle residential roads".
He said: "In Dartford, for example, there are residential roads located in Kent where it isn’t possible to drive out of the road, without entering the London Borough of Bexley.
"With this daily charge in place, hundreds of my constituents could have to pay a fee just to drive out of their road.
"It would create a financial wall around London and set Londoners against their neighbours."
Under the proposals, the mayor's office estimates that 135,000 vehicles would be affected on an average day if the boundaries are widened as planned, potentially raking in £1.7 million a day.
Mr Khan said there was "no more time to waste" in tackling air pollution.
It comes after nine-year-old Lewisham girl Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrah became the first person in the UK to have air pollution listed as a cause of death.
Speaking earlier this month, Mr Khan said: "The triple challenges of tackling toxic air pollution, the climate emergency and congestion mean we need to further reduce emissions from vehicles in London.
"This is also a matter of social justice – with air pollution hitting the poorest communities the hardest.
"I believe the proposal to extend the ULEZ London-wide will have the biggest effect on emissions and congestion relative to the potential financial impact on Londoners as a whole."
The ULEZ zone was recently expanded from the Congestion Charge area to the North and South Circular roads in October 2021.
Drivers of cars, smaller vans, motorbikes and other lighter vehicles travelling into London which do not meet the ULEZ standard have to pay £12.50 to enter.
For diesel cars to avoid the charge they must generally have been registered after September 2015, whereas most petrol models registered from 2005 are also exempt.
Vehicles must meet certain Euro emission standards to avoid paying the charge.
The ULEZ standards are:
To check whether your vehicle is covered by the charge visit tfl.gov.uk/modes/driving/check-your-vehicle/
A spokeswoman for the Mayor of London, said: "Over 80 per cent of drivers in outer London already have cars that are ULEZ compliant, and therefore won’t have to pay if the ULEZ expansion is confirmed following public consultation.
“The Mayor is committed to delivering the biggest scrappage scheme feasible to help Londoners most in need of support to move to ULEZ compliant vehicles.
"He is also demanding the Government provide funding for a scrappage scheme in London, like it’s doing for many other cities around the country.”
