Who's moaning about the public transport in London? Not me; I don't use it often, but when I do it works fine. And being from Liverpool originally with family still up north, I'm well aware of the paucity of public transport in other places, thanks. Thing is, public transport is irrelevant if your job entails driving a van full of stuff around, hence my comment about white vans and reps. - not everyone can go to work with just a messenger bag and an iPod.

Personally I find all road-pricing schemes completely disingenuous - I mean, what if they actually worked and everyone gave up their cars for public transport? Can you imagine the unholy mess if everyone in a vehicle suddenly turned up to get on your bus or train? Can you imagine how long it would take to get anywhere? No, it's a straightforward earner, another tax on those who have the temerity to want to get from one place to another. Nor do I believe for one second that other taxes (fuel duty, road fund license) would be reduced proportionally if road-pricing became a reality.

I don't much fancy having to pay an extra £135 in road-pricing each time I want to take my kids to see their grandparents on the Wirral, but whether you like it or not, whether you vote for it or against it, this stuff sometimes gets rammed through. The Western Extension to the con.charge in London is a classic case in point; 68% of respondents in a referendum voted against it. Only then Livingstone decided it wasn't a referendum at all, more of a poll to gauge the public response, which despite being massively against it, he then ignored and put the extension in place anyway. It stinks and I'm glad he was voted out, but we're still stuck with it and in the meantime there's a big chunk of my work area I have to pay to visit, whether I'm actually earning anything there or not. And no, taking public transport isn't an option for me - have you ever tried to get a ladder on a bus??

Pete.

You can cope in London without a car if you do not need to carry anything. The public transport is adequate, but every time I have been in London I have not noticed a drop off in the traffic, it looks as busy as before. Probably just a way to raise more money.

Yet another load of reasons why this isn't likely to get sorted in the next parliament or in fact at any point in the foreseeable future.

Many of the problems we face at the moment, will require wholesale, society-wide change that neither we, nor the existing infrastructure is ready for.

Considering the timing of this story and who printed it I would imagine that this is another spoiler tactic by the right wing press. Road pricing has been a topic of the Tories for years as well.