Author: PA Media

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has pledged not to expand the ultra low emission zone (Ulez) scheme if he returns to the role after May’s election.

In a letter to London’s transport commissioner Andy Lord, Mr Khan wrote that he had “categorically” ruled out the introduction of a pay-per-mile scheme as well as any tightening of Ulez emissions standards.

He wrote: “There is clearly still more to do to tackle air pollution, and I’m determined to continue leading from the front in London.

“But my commitment to Londoners is this will not include a new pay-per-mile road user charging scheme or amending the standards for the Ulez scheme.

“The introduction and expansion of the Ulez has been necessary and effective. But now it’s in place and working, I will ensure the goalposts are not moved for drivers.”

Mr Khan adds in the letter that he would focus on other measures to tackle air pollution, including improving walking and cycling routes, making buildings more energy efficient and expanding the network of electric vehicle charging stations.

Susan Hall, the Conservative mayoral candidate, said: “Promises are worthless from the man who has been dishonest with Londoners about his plans to tax drivers.

“Sadiq Khan said he wouldn’t expand Ulez at the last election, then went ahead and did the opposite.

“He has spent £150 million building the technology for pay per mile, and now wants us to believe he won’t use it.

“Sadiq Khan is taking Londoners for fools and he just won’t listen. That’s why we need to vote for change on May 2.”

A spokesman for the mayor said: “Sadiq has been clear that he has ruled out the introduction of a pay-per-mile road user charging scheme but the Tories are clearly trying to mislead Londoners by repeatedly saying this is not the case.

“The mayor has now put in writing to the TfL commissioner his clear pledge to London: no pay-per-mile scheme will be introduced while he is mayor.”

Liberal Democrat candidate Rob Blackie said: “The Ulez could have been so much more successful if the mayor hadn’t rushed the 2023 extension, giving people in outer London just a few months to adapt.

“If we’re going to crack climate change we need to bring people with us.

“It’s crucial that the mayor focuses on fixing the problems that still persist, especially for tradespeople who need vans for work.”

Green Party candidate Zoe Garbett said: “It’s really disappointing that the current Labour Mayor of London is refusing to listen to what Londoners are saying about Ulez.

“Whilst Greens absolutely support action to reduce air pollution, the mayor’s current scheme has a lot of unfairness built into it. I would work to tackle this.

“London needs an improved system that will bring down air pollution in a fairer way and I believe the best way to do that is to replace both the Ulez and congestion charge with a new road charging system.

“At the moment, some of the worst polluting vehicles are able to avoid fees whilst many people on low incomes in small older cars are being charged.

“If elected, I would consult with Londoners and start to develop a new system which takes into account the distances driven, vehicle emissions, time of day and location.

“I would also look for ways to take into account how many people are in the car to encourage car sharing.”

Dacia has added more choice and more power to its value-orientated Sandero and Sandero Stepway lines.

Buyers will now be able to get the Sandero Stepway Extreme model with a turbocharged TCe petrol engine – which produces 108bhp and can return 45.6mpg, while the standard Sandero can now be ordered with a new trim level called Journey.

The Journey trim level is already used on the popular Duster SUV and will be the new flagship model in the Sandero range.

As standard, the Sandero Journey comes with automatic air conditioning, rear parking sensors, a reversing camera, an electronic parking brake, blind spot warning and the MediaNav infotainment system with an eight-inch screen which houses both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone mirroring systems, alongside DAB radio and Bluetooth connectivity.

Additionally, it comes with 16-inch alloy wheels, black door mirrors and a shark-fin antenna while inside you’ll find a high central armrest with console storage, removable phone support, flexible boot floor and door sill protectors.

Furthermore, the Sandero Journey can now be ordered with an automatic gearbox with the TCe 90 engine.

Prices for the Sandero Journey start from £15,795 – while the Sandero Stepway Extreme with the new TCe turbocharged engine is priced at £18,645.

Both models will be available to order from April 3 2024 via Dacia’s retail network or online.

One in eight UK supermarkets now offer electric vehicle (EV) charging despite Asda deactivating most of its devices, according to new research.

Analysis by the RAC and charger locator service Zapmap found that the number of supermarkets with EV chargers rose from 1,015 at the end of 2022 to 1,616 12 months later.

The latest figure equates to 13% of all 12,839 supermarkets, including those that do not have parking facilities.

Morrisons is the supermarket chain with the highest proportion of stores offering EV charging at 69%, followed by Lidl (30%).

Asda has charging facilities at just 2% of its stores as many of its devices were deactivated after its contract with infrastructure supplier bp pulse ended.

RAC EV spokesperson Simon Williams said: “Concerns about the lack of public charge points are one of the biggest reasons why drivers aren’t choosing to go electric when buying their next car, with six-in-10 telling us this.

“It’s very encouraging to see supermarkets doing their best to allay these fears by ramping up EV charging facilities across a greater proportion of their estates.

“The data also shows a surge of investment in the very fastest chargers. These rapid and ultra-rapid units are the closest drivers can get to filling up with fuel because they offer the fastest charging speeds.

“As the supermarkets currently dominate UK fuel sales, it makes sense for them to try to retain as much of that market as they can by catering to the needs of all EV drivers looking to recharge as quickly as possible.”

Zapmap co-founder Melanie Shufflebotham said: “With around 3,000 charge points now in place at supermarkets across the UK, it’s really positive to see this sustained growth at such popular charging locations for EV drivers.

“Not only did the total number of supermarkets offering EV charge points rise by almost 60% last year, but we also saw significant growth in the number of those all-important rapid and ultra-rapid chargers.”

An Asda spokesperson said: “Our operating agreement with bp pulse came to an end in October last year.

“These EV charging points remain on site with clear signage to indicate to customers that the equipment is currently not in use, whilst we review our options.”

Nearly 90 per cent of UK motorists prefer physical buttons rather than touch-sensitive controls, according to recent research.

Out of the 1,428 motorists surveyed by What Car?, 60 per cent would be put off buying a car that prioritised touch-sensitive buttons over physical ones.

Furthermore, 60 per cent also admitted that they had been distracted from driving safely while operating in-car controls– but were not just towards touchscreen interfaces.

Driver distraction was a contributing factor in 29 per cent of all road deaths in 2022, compared to 23 per cent in 2013, according to new data published by the Department of Transport.

The figures are backed up by What Car’s? latest consumer test of 20 different infotainment systems.

The test found that drivers were more distracted by limited voice control systems and touchscreen-led interfaces than driving with physical buttons and clear voice control systems.

BMW’s iDrive 8 in the latest BMW 5-Series came out with the best result with 87 per cent, followed by the OpenR system in the Renault Austral at 83 per cent and in third place was the Google-based system found in the Volvo XC60 at 68 per cent.

Claire Evans, What Car? consumer editor, said: “The key to providing the easiest-to-use, least distracting infotainment and air-con systems is to offer drivers plenty of control options.

“The very best systems, such as BMW’s iDrive, Renault’s OpenR and Volvo’s Google built-in, give drivers a number of ways of accessing frequently used functions.”

The worst performers were the Interlink system in the petrol-engined Vauxhall Corsa, finishing in last place with a score of just 22 per cent, while the Suzuki S-Cross scored just 24 per cent with its Pioneer SLDA system.

Both systems were criticised for being limited in providing functionality, neither had voice controls that could comprehend normal speech and instead would get the driver to remember specific commands.

The rate of pothole repairs on local roads in England and Wales has reached an eight-year high, according to a new report.

This shows highways are heading towards “breaking point”, according to the Asphalt Industry Alliance (AIA), which carried out the research.

The annual Alarm survey found that local authorities expect to fix 2.0 million potholes in the current financial year.

That is up 43% compared with 1.4 million during the previous 12 months, and is the highest annual total since 2015/16 when 2.2 million potholes were filled in.

The AIA report said: “This indicates that local authorities, who have a statutory responsibility to keep local roads safe, don’t have the funds to do so in a cost-effective, proactive way, which would allow them to carry out the appropriate maintenance interventions at the right time.”

Just 47% of local road miles were rated as being in a good condition, with 36% adequate and 17% poor.

The survey found that average highway maintenance budgets increased by 2.3% in the 2023/24 financial year compared with the previous 12 months.

But the impact of rising costs due to inflation meant local authorities “effectively experienced a real-terms cut”, the report warned.

Meanwhile, the amount needed to fix the backlog of local road repairs has reached a record £16.3 billion, up 16% from £14.0 billion a year ago.

AIA chairman Rick Green said: “Local authorities have a bit more money to spend this year but the impact of rising costs due to inflation means they have actually been able to do less with it.

“Couple this with the effects of the extreme weather we are increasingly facing, and the result is that the rate at which local roads are suffering is accelerating towards breaking point.”

The survey found that an estimated 2.0 million potholes will be filled by councils in the 2023/24 financial year, up from 1.4 million during the previous 12 months.

This is the most since 2015/16.

In October 2023, the Government announced it would provide £8.3 billion of extra funding over 11 years to fix potholes in England.

This was part of the Network North strategy to use money saved by scrapping the planned extension of HS2 north of Birmingham.

Mr Green said: “There’s still a mountain to climb when it comes to fixing our local roads.

“While it’s great that English local authorities should be getting more money from the Government through its Network North funding, it’s clearly not going to be enough to halt the decline.”

Local Government Association transport spokesman Darren Rodwell said: “This report reveals in stark terms the huge challenge facing councils in maintaining the local roads network, which nearly everyone relies on.

“The backlog of repairs now stands at almost double the extra amount that Government has promised over the next 11 years.”

AA president Edmund King said: “Our breakdown data shows that 2023 was the worst year for potholes for five years.

“Arguably the road network is a local council’s biggest asset, but not enough planned investment and repairs are being made to make streets safer and smoother for drivers and those on two wheels.”

Nicholas Lyes, director of policy and standards at charity IAM RoadSmart, said: “The AIA’s report lays bare the crumbling state of our road network as well as the effort and money now required to fix it.

“Notwithstanding the financial headache pothole-related damage does to the vehicle’s owner, our crater-laden roads are posing a serious road safety hazard.”

A Department for Transport spokesman said: “We’re taking decisive action to resurface roads and fix potholes by investing an extra £8.3 billion of reallocated HS2 funding, the biggest ever funding increase for local road improvements and enough to resurface over 5,000 miles of roads across the country.

“In addition, we have made £150 million available for local authorities right now meaning funding for most authorities has increased by almost a third compared to last year, with a further £150 million to follow in the coming financial year.”

Driverless cars have been described as a “game-changer”, despite MPs expressing concerns on safety and the potential weaponisation of autonomous vehicles.

Transport Secretary Mark Harper told the Commons that the Automated Vehicles Bill is part of the Government’s plans to make the UK “the natural home for the self-driving vehicle industry”.

The Bill aims to set the legal framework for the safe deployment of self-driving vehicles.

During its second reading, Mr Harper suggested the Bill will help the industry take root and would be a “game-changer” for road safety.

He later added: “Despite Britain having some of the safest roads in the world, it is a reality that the levels of serious injury and road deaths remain too high.

“That could soon change, as I said, if we can eliminate driver error which is involved in 88% of road collisions, you could actually get to the point where self-driving vehicles were a game-changer for road safety.

“They don’t drink and drive, they don’t get stressed, they don’t get distracted, they don’t speed, they don’t get tired and they don’t bend the rules of the road or push their luck.”

Mr Harper also said self-driving cars could help improve accessibility, adding: “For example, giving those who cannot drive at the moment, such as the 340,000 people who are registered blind or partially-sighted, new options to travel independently, opening doors to economic and social opportunities that so far have remained closed.”

Labour MP Clive Efford (Eltham) urged the Transport Secretary to ensure that the makers of self-driving car technology cannot cover “their own backs” if accidents happen.

Mr Efford said: “We have also just experienced the Horizon scandal where the manufacturers themselves had access to the technology. What security have drivers got that we won’t have the designers of this software that will be governing these cars actually covering their own backs?”

Mr Harper replied: “One of the things we will have in place is a duty of candour. We are also going to be setting up a regulatory process with investigations of every self-driving vehicle involved in an incident.

“But importantly, the manufacturers will be legally obliged to have that duty of candour to disclose the information so that these issues can be got to the bottom of.”

Transport committee chairman Iain Stewart said there is a possibility of self-driving cars being “hacked by malevolent actors”.

The Conservative MP told the Commons: “That’s where you have what might be called a ‘black swan event’ where there is a significant, co-ordinated cyber attack that instructs many vehicles simultaneously to behave in a way that could cause mass public injury.

“The instruction might come to drive at high speed, turn sharp right into a crowded pedestrian area. The concern is that as things stand, the absence of a mutualisation of risk potentially could lead to such level of claims that would bankrupt the car insurance sector.”

Mr Stewart flagged several other areas in relation to safety, saying that the committee did have concerns “that the broad definition of self-driving vehicles being as safe as a competent or careful human driver were just a bit too vague and weak”.

He added: “The need to ensure that drivers have the relevant level of skill and experience to intervene when that technology requires them to do so, and as I said those are moments that are obviously going to be immediate and often in challenging conditions, and that’s going to require, I think, over and above what the general driving competence is and what the driver ought to do in those circumstances.”

Earlier in the debate Mr Stewart said “there are many, many upsides” to legislation on self-driving cars, adding: “To give some idea of the scale of this, figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders estimate that by 2040 the annual economic impact to the country will be £66 billion.”

The shadow transport secretary Louise Haigh said driverless cars can play a “huge role” in reducing collisions caused by human error.

She told MPs: “It has been estimated that road collisions cost our economy as much as £43.2 billion in 2022 and that 85% of all road crashes involve an element of human error.

“Automated vehicles can play a huge role in reducing that human error, avoiding tragic accidents and helping to reduce the burden on the state in the process.”

The Bill will undergo further scrutiny at committee stage at a later date.

Two people have been arrested after the driver of a Lamborghini Huracan allegedly failed to stop for police and then crashed on a Derbyshire A-road.

The supercar, which can cost upwards of £250,000, was left damaged on the central reservation of the A617 in Chesterfield in the early hours of Saturday morning after the single-vehicle crash.

Derbyshire Constabulary said the driver failed to stop for officers at around 1am and they followed at a “safe distance” before the crash.

In a statement, a spokesman said: “Two people have been arrested on suspicion of driving offences after a collision in Chesterfield.

“Officers followed the vehicle at a safe distance but it was involved in a single-vehicle collision on the A617 shortly afterwards.

“A woman in her 20s was arrested at the scene and a man in his 20s was arrested soon after. Both have been bailed pending further enquiries.”

The production-ready version of Tesla’s much-anticipated Roadster is nearly here, according to the American firm’s founder and owner Elon Musk.

Musk posted last night via X, formerly known as Twitter, that the new Roadster’s production design was complete and that there would be a reveal at the end of this year.

The original Tesla Roadster went on sale in 2008 and never really caught on with British buyers. A chassis from the Lotus Elise promised a fun innovative electric sports car, but unreliability and heavy weight spoiled the product. However, the second generation, which was revealed in 2017, has high expectations.

After numerous delays, supply chain issues, and the complexity and extended development of a tri-motor powertrain, the new Roadster will finally be going out to customers at the beginning of 2025, according to the Tesla boss.

19 years ago, when my 1st company got bought, I had to decide between buying a house in Palo Alto or a McLaren F1 (best car ever imo). Was no contest. I bought F1 & a small condo that was much cheaper than the car. New Tesla Roadster will exceed all gas sports cars in every way…

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 9, 2018

In previous reveals, the Roadster would be available with a rocket thruster package, built in conjunction with SpaceX.

Musk is now claiming that the revised Roadster will be capable of achieving a 0-60mph time of under a second, putting it among some of the fastest-accelerating cars ever made. Speaking on X, the Tesla boss said that the new Roadster will ‘exceed all gas sports cars in every way’.

Originally, it was expected that the new Roadster would cost around £190,000, for the ‘Founders edition’ model. But since further changes and development have been made, it’s likely to increase to almost £200,000.

However, the Roadster’s biggest rival, the Rimac Nevera cost £2 million and is almost a second slower from 0-60 mph, making the Roadster look like great value.

Further announcements will be made during the year regarding the Roadster’s upcoming reveal.

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) says it is exploring various ways to tackle the rising cost of motor cover.

The association has outlined steps that it believes the industry, Government or regulators could initiate or improve on.

This includes the industry doing more on transparency around which vehicles are more costly to insure, to help people make more informed choices.

The ABI said it is exploring a partnership with the police to help the recovery of stolen vehicles from ports, as well as working with vehicle manufacturers, the Mayor of London’s office and the National Police Chiefs’ Council to find more ways to prevent vehicle thefts.

Continuing to crack down on fraud and uninsured driving will reduce the costs borne by law-abiding drivers for their insurance, the association said.

The average price paid for motor insurance in the final quarter of 2023 was around a third, or £157 in cash terms, higher compared with a year earlier, according to the ABI’s figures.

Between October 1 and December 31 2023, the average price paid for private motor cover was £627, up from £470 during the same period a year earlier.

The ABI also highlighted insurance premium tax (IPT) as a source of costs, saying it adds £67 to the average policy. IPT is a tax on insurers which feeds into the costs customers pay.

It also plans to commission research into the impact of various social policies focused on helping low-income households manage their insurance costs. This will be undertaken in collaboration with its Consumer Advisory Group, which is made up of consumer champions and organisations including Which?, Citizen’s Advice and Fair by Design.

The steps have been announced in the lead up to the publication of the ABI’s wider financial inclusion strategy, which aims to help consumers better understand and access insurance, protection and long-term savings products.

The ABI said its members are also committing to better explain how insurance premiums are calculated and the steps that customers can take to reduce costs. This includes more detailed explanations at renewal, but also when buying policies.

Longer repair times, higher repair costs, and the rising price of replacement vehicles have been adding to the cost of premiums.

Rising repair costs are due to a mixture of the price of labour, energy costs, and vehicles becoming more sophisticated, with electric vehicles requiring more specialist expertise to repair.

Recent research from consumer group Which? indicated that motor insurance customers who buy cover monthly can end up paying hundreds of pounds more than those who pay for policies annually.

The ABI said that premium finance, which allows consumers to pay monthly instead of needing to pay in one go, is another focus for it as part of its package of steps on motor insurance affordability.

Mervyn Skeet, director of general insurance policy said: “We will continue to do what we can under our new strategy to help consumers access the products that are integral to financial wellbeing and play a key role in the nation’s financial resilience.”

The UK’s advertising watchdog will take no action against Ford after the carmaker made claims of “zero emissions driving” in a recent ad.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has ruled that the claims, made in a paid-for Google ad for the brand’s Explorer SUV, were “unlikely to mislead”.

The ruling comes just weeks after a bombshell decision by the body which ruled that carmakers could not describe electric vehicles as being ‘zero emissions’.

Both MG and BMW received reprimands for “misleading” claims made in their own ads, but the Blue Oval will now escape punishment, following an investigation.

The ruling forms part of a wider investigation by the ASA into “zero emissions” claims.

The Ford ad, published on August 16, was identified by the watchdog’s Active Ad Monitoring system, which uses AI to proactively search for online ads that might break the rules.

The advert in question, a paid-for Google ad for Ford seen on August 16, 2023, featured the claim ‘New All-Electric Explorer – Redefining Adventure.

‘The ultimate all-electric SUV is here. The Explorer. Redefine the meaning of adventure. The ultimate exploration vehicle – Find out more & discover the range of features. Zero-emissions driving. Fast charging. Driver Assistance Tech.’

The ASA ruled that the additional context around the ‘zero emissions’ claim, meant that the ad was ‘unlikely to mislead’ and separated it from the cases of both MG and BMW.

In its own evidence to the investigation, Ford defended its position but agreed to amend the claim to “zero-emissions while driving” to make it clearer in future ads.

A spokesman for the ASA said: “Unlike our previous BMW and MG ads, we found that this ad for an electric SUV didn’t break our rules.

“We determined that because the claim was put next to context around specific features of the car, consumers wouldn’t understand the ‘zero emissions’ element to refer to the whole life cycle of the vehicle, but instead specifically the driving.”

In its ruling, which decided that no action was necessary, the watchdog said: “While the ad included the claim ‘Zero-emissions driving’, we noted that it was immediately followed by references to ‘Fast charging’ and ‘Driver Assistance Tech’.

“This further text placed the claim in the context of some of the specific features of the car, which included its emissions while being driven, its charging capability and technical function.

“The claim was unlikely, therefore, in that specific context to be understood as a comment on the vehicle’s overall life-cycle (manufacture, use and disposal) emissions.

“We concluded that the ad was unlikely to mislead.”