A London council has started new emissions-based parking charges that will ramp up by nearly six-fold in the coming years.
Hackney introduced the new fees aimed at penalising drivers with the most polluting cars.
The council is also bringing in extra costs for diesel drivers.
It has fixed its prices for residents’ permits for the next seven years, with some drivers likely to see parking fees rise from just over £200 to more than £1,200 by the end of the decade.
Hackney is also looking to introduce other traffic-reducing policies, such as turning all of its streets into low-traffic neighbourhoods (LTNs) by 2026.
Mete Coban, the council’s lead on transport and environment, defended the new changes saying they are aimed at tackling the climate emergency and improving air quality by encouraging people to turn to public transport, cycling or walking.
He said: “In developing our parking charges, we’ve listened to our residents, who have asked for long-term certainty about permit prices, so they can make informed decisions.”
The new charges will put extra pressure on motorists who are already being hit in the pocket with Ulez fees and the congestion charge.
Under the Hackney charges, an annual estate parking permit for the most polluting diesel vehicle will cost £213 this year, but will increase to £1,249 by 2029-30.
This will also include a £200 surcharge, which will increase by £50 every year, meaning that by 2029 all diesel vehicles could be paying an extra £500 when compared to other cars.
Petrol vehicles in Hackney, such as some Land Rovers that produce more than 191g/km of emissions, will still face four-fold increases from £97 to £433 in five years.
Alternatively, electric vehicles, which currently only have to pay £50 for an on-street permit, will see this increase by just £4 over the next five years.
An estate resident permit will increase by just £10 over that period but campaign group Save London Motorcycling branded the charges “outrageous”.
A spokesman for the group said: “The fact that they want to increase these already outrageous charges every year just adds insult to injury. If this carries on, some riders will soon have to pay over £1,000 for the tiny bit of parking space they use.”
In its advice page for drivers on how to reduce permit costs, the council suggested that residents either buy a greener vehicle to escape the charges, cycle or join a car club.
It also recommended applying to the Mayor of London’s £110 million car scrappage scheme, for people on low incomes or receiving benefits.
Meanwhile the council was also looking to pilot “pay-per-mile” road user charging, while having brought in a number of car-free developments.
Cllr Coban added: “These plans set out the next stage of our ambitions to reduce traffic and pollution; get everyone travelling healthily; and create liveable neighbourhoods that support this switch.
“Nearly all of Hackney will be low traffic; we’ll be developing options to support distance-based road user charging; there will be more bike and car sharing; we will create 4,000 new secure cycle parking spaces; every Hackney primary school will have a ‘school street’; and we’ll be doing everything we can to build a greener, healthier Hackney.”
