Record traffic on London's roads 'caused by firms like Uber'

'Uber's fault': Traffic in London
Rex
Pippa Crerar5 January 2016

Congestion on London’s roads is reaching record levels, partly because of the huge increase in private taxi drivers working for firms such as Uber, it was claimed today.

Motorists are spending an average of 250 hours — more than 24 days — a year stuck in traffic, with more delivery vans and roadworks also blamed.

The Licensed Taxi Drivers Association said the “triple whammy” was causing “unsustainable” congestion which, if left unchecked, could damage the capital’s economy.

In the latest salvo in its battle against Uber, it claimed extra congestion was costing London £5.4 billion a year.

Steve McNamara, of the LTDA, said: “London is becoming more and more congested and it is high time that the Government and Transport for London take action to address this. The Government giving TfL the power to cap the number of private hire vehicles on our street is the simplest way to do this.”

The Greens have said Londoners could spend an average of 40 days per year in traffic jams by 2030 because of congestion and traffic levels.

The number of minicabs in the capital reached a record 93,000 in December, according to the Mayor of London, and 600 licences a week are being issued. Last year, roadworks caused 1,005 hours of planned disruption and 2,663 hours of unplanned disruption.

Department for Transport figures show the number of delivery vehicles registered in the capital rose by 12 per cent in the last decade, partly driven by internet shopping. Last year, around 7,300 entered the capital every hour during the morning rush-hour.

An Uber spokesman said: “Millions of cars and vans drive on London’s roads each day, but at any one time just 4,000 are with Uber. In the congestion zone during charging hours, Uber accounts for less than three per cent of the traffic.

“The Department for Transport’s own figures suggest three things are responsible: delivery vans, low petrol prices and a growing economy.”

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