Electric vehicle drivers will soon be required to pay to enter central London, following confirmation from Mayor Sadiq Khan that the city’s long-standing EV exemption from the Congestion Charge will be scrapped. The update was reported by MyLondon.
According to MyLondon, the Mayor has approved a revised charging structure that will introduce new discounted rates for EVs instead of complete exemption — marking a major shift in London’s transport policy.
What changes from January 2026
As reported by MyLondon:
- The standard Congestion Charge increases to £18 per day.
- Electric cars will pay £13.50, a 25% discounted rate under the new system.
- Electric vans and trucks will pay £9, receiving a 50% discount.
- Discounts only apply if the vehicle is registered on TfL Auto Pay.
- The previous Cleaner Vehicle Discount — which gave EVs free entry — will be fully removed.
The new structure aligns EVs more closely with petrol and diesel vehicles in terms of congestion policy, rather than environmental incentives.
Discounts will tighten again in 2030
MyLondon reports that discount levels for EVs will be further reduced from March 2030, dropping to:
- 12.5% discount for electric cars
- 25% discount for electric vans, HGVs and quadricycles
This means EV drivers will gradually move toward paying the full Congestion Charge as the decade progresses.
Changes for residents inside the charging zone
The Mayor’s updated rules also affect residents significantly. As confirmed by MyLondon:
- Those already receiving the 90% Residents’ Discount before 1 March 2027 will keep it, regardless of vehicle type.
- New applicants after 1 March 2027 will only get the 90% discount if they own an EV.
- Low-income and disabled residents can still apply for the discount regardless of vehicle type, but only until March 2030.
DM News Commentary
For years, both the UK Government and local authorities encouraged drivers — including taxi and private hire operators — to switch to electric by offering strong financial incentives: no Congestion Charge, no road tax, clean-air exemptions, cheaper running costs and the message that EVs were the future.
But that landscape is changing fast.
With London now charging EVs to enter the Congestion Zone, road tax returning from 2025, and the possibility of a national pay-per-mile system being explored, many drivers feel the incentives that pushed them to go electric are slowly being removed.
For taxi and private-hire professionals who invested thousands in EV fleets based on those promises, this shift raises serious questions. The decision doesn’t just affect cost — it affects long-term planning, vehicle choice, and whether going electric still makes financial sense for high-mileage drivers.
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