Westminster Council today demanded mayor Boris Johnson scraps the western extension of the congestion charge immediately.
Boris Johnson announced his plans to ditch the western extension of the zone at Portobello Market to the delight of traders, but said legal complications were likely to keep it in force until 2010.
Council leaders want him to use "emergency powers", arguing the recession could be classified as a "major event" under the GLA Act 1999, allowing him to remove the charge.
Westminster Council director of transportation Martin Low said: "TfL's monitoring shows in 2007 there has not been any consistent decongestion, despite the fact that traffic levels have remained low. We hope that the mayor will now also extend the usual charge-free days during the Christmas period using emergency powers to help Christmas shoppers and businesses during these difficult times.We also want him to start consultation on the variation to the Mayor's Transport Strategy so that the western extension is removed long before 2010."
Potobello Market traders are celebrating the imending end of Congestion Charge which they claim was crippling them.
Cheryl Devlin, 50, was so pleased she grabbed Boris and kissed him in front of television cameras.
The fourth generation fruit and vegetable trader from Blenheim Crescent said: "He was gobsmacked. I've always been a Boris fan. I used to serve him when he was a kid.Takings were down by at least half since the charge, because people don't come in from the surrounding boroughs. Now they will."
Vito Pesce, 37, of Shepherd's Bush and has owned Vito's Olive Oils & Vinegars on Portobello Market for four years. He said: "As soon as the charge came in business suffered. As a businessman I am happy they scrapped it, but as a person I know it's not the best thing for pollution."
