Hackney Pay-Per-Mile: Council Eyes Road Pricing Pilot – But Sadiq Khan Says No

11th November 2026

Updated 11 Nov 2026, 19:26 · First published 11 Nov 2026

Hackney could become the testing ground for pay-per-mile driving in London. The Green-led council has written into its draft transport plan that it “will consider lobbying for the introduction of systems of smart road pricing” – either as a local pilot in the borough or as a national scheme.

But the idea has already run into a wall at City Hall. Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has repeatedly ruled it out, saying: “As long as I am Mayor, we are not going to have pay-per-mile.”

Hackney pay-per-mile: the key points

WhatSmart road pricing – drivers charged by distance

Where it appearsHackney Council’s draft Transport Strategy 2026–2036

StatusCouncil “will consider lobbying” – no scheme, no charges set

Who runs HackneyGreen Party, Mayor Zoë Garbett (elected May 2026)

Sadiq Khan’s positionOpposed while he is Mayor

National change already comingPay-per-mile tax on electric cars from April 2028

What is Hackney actually proposing?

At this stage, not a scheme – a position. The borough’s draft Transport Strategy, which sets out its plans for the next ten years, says the council will consider lobbying for smart road pricing. That could mean pushing for a trial in Hackney, or backing a national system where drivers pay according to how far they drive rather than through a flat charge.

There are no details yet on how a pilot would work, what it would cost drivers or when it could start. A borough cannot introduce a charge like this on its own: road charging in London is controlled by the Mayor and Transport for London.

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Why Hackney?

Hackney has been pushing road pricing for years. Back in 2023, under its previous Labour administration, the council put itself forward as a possible pilot borough for distance-based charging. It is also one of London’s heaviest users of low traffic neighbourhoods, which cover most of its residential streets.

In May 2026 the Greens won control of the borough in a landslide, with Zoë Garbett becoming the party’s first directly elected council mayor. The new transport strategy is one of the first big policy documents under the new administration.

What Sadiq Khan says

Khan once said pay-per-mile charging could eventually replace London’s existing road charges, but he has since ruled it out completely. His line now is that there will be no pay-per-mile scheme while he is in office – which means any Hackney pilot would need his support, or a future mayor’s, to go ahead.

Opposition: “bonkers war on motorists”

The Conservatives attacked the idea. Shadow Transport Secretary Richard Holden called it part of a “bonkers war on motorists”.

Pay-per-mile is coming anyway – for electric cars

Whatever happens in Hackney, a form of pay-per-mile is already on the way nationally. From April 2028, the government’s electric vehicle excise duty will charge 3p a mile for fully electric cars and 1.5p a mile for plug-in hybrids, on top of normal road tax. Drivers will have to give mileage readings when they renew their tax.

Hackney’s Transport Strategy is still a draft. Residents will have the chance to respond before it is finalised.