Sadiq Khan red-faced as ULEZ fiasco means drivers will be refunded for fines

Motorists wrongly fined by vandalised ULEZ cameras are to person their charges annulled, Transport for London (TfL) has confirmed.

There person been a spate of vigilante vandalisms to cameras since the arguable argumentation was introduced successful London successful 2020.

In Chingford, Essex, vigilantes took it upon themselves to crook the cameras circular to look roads extracurricular of ULEZ’s remit, meaning that drivers who had not entered the ULEZ portion were near with charges of up to £12.50 a day.

But aft appealing online and to the authorities, motorists who were wrongly charged volition present person the charges rescinded.

Conservative London Assembly subordinate Emma Best said that "dozens" of residents had reached retired to her aft being fined.

Best drew attraction to locals' inability to entreaty the mendacious fines - and issued a scathing onslaught connected TfL's charging systems, labelling the concern "absolutely ridiculous".

She said: "TfL person continually shown that they person wholly mislaid power of the medication of fees and fines, and are not adjacent capable to correctly place the zone.

"Dozens of residents contacted maine aft being fined for driving extracurricular the portion and subsequently having their appeals rejected by TfL.

The arguable policy, introduced to conveyance emissions successful the capital, has been besieged by protestation and activism since its inception.

TfL person said that its unit person been "subjected to unacceptable maltreatment and intimidation" by individuals 'protesting' the strategy including having "eggs and achromatic spirit" thrown astatine them.

According to documents for TfL's Safety, Sustainability and Human Resources Panel, the organisation said: "Confrontations associated with the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) inactive diagnostic highly successful Quarter 1 [of 2024/25]. With incidents including an assault, eggs and achromatic tone thrown, a car kicked, and vehicles blocked in, arsenic good arsenic faulty cameras stolen aft a confrontation.

"We proceed to enactment with our proviso chain, the MPS [Metropolitan Police Service] and the wider Greater London Authority (GLA) Group to place ways of reducing these incidents arsenic good arsenic undertaking grooming and briefing sessions connected reducing struggle and struggle resolution."

Speaking of the abuse, a spokesperson for TFL said: “It is simply a bittersweet information that we person been forced to deploy information unit to support our contractors installing oregon repairing ULEZ cameras. A fig of information unit person been subjected to unacceptable maltreatment and intimidation portion carrying retired their duties.

"For information reasons, they are advised to grounds immoderate issues connected body-worn cameras to assistance deescalate struggle and if necessary, grounds grounds for constabulary investigations. Vandalism is unacceptable and each incidents connected our web are reported to the constabulary for investigation.

"Criminal harm to ULEZ cameras oregon vehicles puts the perpetrators astatine hazard of prosecution and injury, portion simultaneously risking the information of the public. Those trying to disrupt a strategy that is helping millions of Londoners respire cleaner aerial volition look the consequences of their actions done the courts."