Inst of Couriers Chair Carl Lomas was at the TfL freight forum chaired by TfL’s Director of Strategy Christina Calderato, hosted at TfL Palestra for big turnout at end of day forum in chilly London. Red hot topic was Congestion Charge changes on the doorstep of the New Year.

Welcome Christina Calderato in the cold spot of London Nov for a full house Freight Forum turnout at Palestra via Southwark tube.

Hot topic - Congestion Charge change from consultation

Must be on auto-pay for discounts on EV vans.

Clean & efficient freight: Congestion Charge - Christina Calderato opened with the hot topic of latest Congestion Charge change - Cost from 15 pounds to 18 pounds, EV vans to be discounted 50%. – Talking implementation times Christina recognised operator challenge, but stated it's better to have this than a wait. Operator talk wanted to see this go further, balance against diesel is stretched in favour of fossil fuel while customer promise remains driven by clean air. Discount is only available via auto-pay. We are doing everything we can to balance congestion and clean air and we will be monitoring the data.

Operators showed concern about the numbers, unable to balance the books on the EV value and considering the shift back to diesel. Implementation date was also driven as a key concern as this arrives so quickly.

Work-related road risk gets environment content for bids. - Clean freight: Environmental Requirements in WRRR Tim Rudin & Jason Ross - Recapped on reducing emissions, Mayoral targets and decarbonisation. Tim updated on GLA Policy- Speaking work-related road risk WRRR and environmental material embedded in the framework for bids contracting vehicles below and above 3.5 tonnes. Best practice case study on a traffic technology contract looking at Telents Asset Management team committing to a fully electric fleet. Jason Ross took questions. Answering detail around contract size.

TfL keen to facilitate operator sharing of charge infrastructure.

Scott Wilding, ‘Great news to shout about’ - HGVs have become safer on London roads - Safe freight: Improvements in HGV KSI’s - Scott Wilding – Things on road safety in London are getting better. We have not won but things are far better over last 5 years. 38% improvement in HGV serious accidents. CLOCKS and FORS each making roads safer. More people are living well. This brings better life for drivers - fewer drivers involved in incidents. These reductions are showing tangible benefits down the supply chain.

Efficient freight: London Logistics Plan Emily Kingston – High Street and freight need is changing. Logistics as an engine for green growth – Emily spoke on The London Growth plan section 7 - ‘Logistics is an enabler of housing growth! - to support housing growth and support logistics with technology and innovation. Building needs huge logistics, the new-builds of London are targeting a car-free world.’

Clean freight: Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Strategy Update Joseph Duggan – Joseph spoke new commitments for commercial vehicles including design of infrastructure and charge points. Data sharing for HGV charge was on the agenda. Operators encouraged to share charging infrastructure. TfL are keen to use their role to integrate sharing of charging between operators. HGV operator question was how could we get access to the Bus charging systems? Van operator showed concerns of public charge costs and difficulty of living in roadside locations without cable hook-up.

IOC Chair Carl Lomas with Isaac Little at TfL Freight forum Nov 2025 – Rich agenda with EV focus

Scott Wilding – HGV is safer on London’s Roads

Joseph Duggan – TfL keen to encourage infrastructure charge sharing

IOC Dr Tracey Worth at keynote from TfL Emily Kingston – High Street and freight need is changing. Logistics as an engine for green growth

Look back

reflecting on TfL confirmation for changes to the Congestion Charge

Discounts for clean air electric vans

Express remains cleanest sector in transport

As part of the first phase from 2 January 2026, there will be a 50 per cent discount for electric vans, HGVs and quadricycles registered for Auto Pay.

As part of the second phase from 4 March 2030, there will be a 25 per cent discount for electric vans, HGVs and quadricycles registered for Auto Pay and a 12.5 per cent discount for electric cars registered for Auto Pay.

This is a sensible approach - IOC senior fellow, Graham Thomas, Senior Fleet Operations Manager delivering food to door at Ocado, ‘I am pleased to see this revision, scrapping the clean vehicle discount completely at this stage was entirely the wrong decision whilst expecting operators to move to more expensive electric vehicles, whilst still an on cost to operators this is a sensible approach.’

It’s a shame there is not a proper distinction between an EV car which is a choice and an EV van which is a necessity for final mile.

One brand checking the numbers, £2500 per year extra for an EV van. It’s still cheaper to pay full price and get a diesel!

TfL explain... Changes to the Congestion Charging Scheme are being made to avoid around 2,200 extra vehicles using the zone on an average weekday, which would increase congestion and associated air pollution

• The Cleaner Vehicle Discount (CVD) was introduced in 2019 to run until 25 December 2025, but now the Mayor has decided to continue incentivising the switch to electric vehicles (EVs) so that greener drivers still pay less
• Discounts up to 100 per cent will continue to support low-income and disabled Londoners, while a new tiered system will replace the Cleaner Vehicle Discount to further encourage greener transport, available via Auto Pay
• New discounts and other changes will help manage congestion and the transition to cleaner vehicles while recognising business needs such as van use

After feedback from Inst of Couriers and Londoners, the Mayor of London and Transport for London (TfL) have today (13 November) confirmed new measures to ensure the Congestion Charging scheme continues to accelerate the capital’s green transition while supporting businesses and residents – building a fairer, greener and more prosperous London for everyone.

The Congestion Charge has been in place for over two decades, helping to manage traffic and congestion in central London.

The Cleaner Vehicle Discount (CVD) was introduced in 2019 to run until 25 December 2025, but now the Mayor has decided to continue incentivising the switch to electric vehicles (EVs), so that greener drivers still pay less.

The new system, with tiered discounts available via Auto Pay, means that:

• The daily Congestion Charge will increase from £15 to £18 from 2 January 2026 – a lower than inflation increase and the first increase since 2020
• As part of the first phase from 2 January 2026, there will be a 50 per cent discount for electric vans, HGVs and quadricycles registered for Auto Pay as well as a 25 per cent discount for electric cars registered for Auto Pay
• As part of the second phase from 4 March 2030, there will be a 25 per cent discount for electric vans, HGVs and quadricycles registered for Auto Pay and a 12.5 per cent discount for electric cars registered for Auto Pay

The combination of these changes enables a careful balance between continuing to support the important transition to EVs and ensuring that the Congestion Charge remains effective at managing traffic and congestion within central London. Since the CVD was introduced in 2019, the number of EVs registered has risen almost sixfold - from around 20,000 to more than 116,000 earlier this year – they will account for close to 20 per cent of all vehicles in the Congestion Charging Zone by the end of the year.

Without these changes, TfL has estimated that there could be more than 2,000 additional vehicles driving during operating hours in the zone on an average weekday. This would undermine the benefits of the Congestion Charge, leading to more queues and delays – negatively impacting London’s economy, local businesses, bus passengers and other essential services. Every year, congestion already costs London billions of pounds; in 2024 alone, vehicle congestion cost the capital £3.85 billion, averaging £942 per driver.

Alongside the new tiered system, the Residents’ Discount will change to incentivise longer term take-up of EVs, with those currently living in the area remaining unaffected. Those who are in receipt of the Residents’ Discount prior to 1 March 2027 will retain their 90 per cent discount, regardless of vehicle fuel type. For those newly applying for the Residents’ Discount after 1 March 2027, the 90 per cent discount will only apply to EVs.

Having listened to feedback from the public consultation including the Inst of Couriers for express delivery sector, there will be further support for low-income and disabled residents receiving certain benefits, so that they can continue to apply for the Residents’ Discount until March 2030 without their vehicle needing to be electric.

There will also now be a new 100 per cent discount for ‘back to base’ electric car club vehicles. This is for car club EVs that are hired from and returned to the same marked parking space within the zone. This will give residents - including those on low incomes without EV access - an option to use one for essential car journeys.

Changes to the Mayor's road user charging guidance are also being taken forward, which would allow the Congestion Charge to be increased in line with Tube fares (or inflation plus one per cent or a lower amount) without consultation. This new procedure will ensure consistency with the approach that applies when public passenger transport fares are set, meaning the Mayor can ensure that public transport does not become proportionately more expensive than driving in central London. The wider changes now mean that procedural and administrative changes to the scheme may also be made without consultation, and the minimum consultation periods that apply when making other types of changes, have been reduced.

Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London, said: "Keeping London moving by reducing congestion is vital for our city and for our economy. While the congestion charge has been a huge success since its introduction, we must ensure it stays fit for purpose, and sticking to the status quo would see around 2,200 more vehicles using the congestion charging zone on an average weekday next year. We must support Londoners and businesses to use more sustainable travel, so I'm pleased that substantial incentives will remain in place for Londoners who switch to cleaner vehicles, as we work to build a greener and better London for everyone."

Christina Calderato, TfL’s Director of Strategy, said: "If we want to ensure that London remains a thriving city for everyone to enjoy, then it’s vital that traffic and congestion is kept under control and managed effectively. The changes to the Congestion Charging scheme play a key role in allowing us to do that, while striking a careful balance that enables drivers, businesses and other organisations to continue transitioning to cleaner vehicles and more sustainable forms of transport."

Customers are encouraged to register for a London Road User Charging account, sign up to TfL Auto Pay and add their vehicle if they have not already done so. Auto Pay is required for certain discounts, including the new CVD tiered system and the Residents’ Discount. Register now at tfl.gov.uk/auto-pay.