Revealed: Five London councils spent £730k on failed bid to block ULEZ

The total cost to five councils who attempted to stop ULEZ expansion was £730,941 according to Bromley Council.

In an news story published today the authority stated that action saw costs to “Hillingdon Council, which led the legal challenge, of £230,941, plus legal costs to TfL (payable by all) of £500,000.

“The four London boroughs (Hillingdon, Bexley, Bromley Harrow) will each pay £147,853.20.”

In July a Judge rejected the five council’s arguments at a Judicial Review.

Wasted funds?

While spending money on that doomed escapade, Bexley have been busy letting areas of their borough rot.

To think Bexley Council could have spent a fraction of that to ensure the welcome to their borough seen by thousands daily at Abbey Wood station wasn’t such an embarrassing dump.

The area is a mess and has never been looked after by Bexley since millions were spent by external organisations on improvement work.

Bromley Council leader Colin Smith seems to have got a bit carried away too and called themselves the “Rebel Coalition” Try not to laugh. Almost as tragic as the “Blade Runners”.

Back in the real world 95 per cent of vehicles driving in the expanded zone are already compliant.

The scrappage scheme was expanded to assist those with older vehicles and saw grants available to replace. When even a 20 year old Ford Focus petrol is exempt, it’s not the most arduous task.

And while some groups have suffered, much of the opposition was way overblown by certain politicians for electoral gain.

Instead of pushing to help those who really needed it such as charities with older vans, some councils chose not to do that but pushed for blanket rejection and failed.

In the process they blew a lot of money while there’s a real need for serious investment in their own boroughs.