A new poll has revealed that three out of four drivers would prefer to pay charges to enter city centres rather than take the public transport option.

The figures, which have been published by Auto Express show that of 1,400 readers to answer the online poll, 77 per cent have admitted that they would rather drive into an area such as London’s ULEZ rather than use the public transport options available to them.

The ULEZ zone in the UK capital is currently the only area of Britain which has charges, both with the Congestion Charge and the Ultra Low Emission Zone, which charges some older vehicles £12.50 a day to enter.

Other cities are considering the prospect of charging drivers to enter central areas, with Cambridge, Aberdeen, Birmingham and Bristol already drawing up plans. But the fees don’t appear to be dissuading drivers from making the journeys in their cars.

“The convenience of the car outweighs the fee of driving into a clean-air zone,” said Jack Cousens, head of roads policy at the AA, continuing “scepticism around the public transport offering” was a big issue. “The Government has been clear that a chargeable clean-air zone should be a last resort, rather than a first response.”

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