London Congestion Charging: Successes, gaps and future opportunities offered by cooperative ITS

The London Congestion Charging (LCC) scheme was initially introduced on 17 February 2003. Being the largest of its kind and employing advanced technology, it marked a major innovation in the field of urban road user charging and provided inspiration to several other cities worldwide. Nine years on, and following a number of operational changes that have taken place, this study analyzes successes and pitfalls, and identifies potential future opportunities in the light of latest technological developments in the field of cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS). The analysis concentrates primarily on the LCC scheme itself, but draws broader conclusions about the future of urban road charging in general.