UK homeowners at risk of new driveway charges | Tech News

UK homeowners with entry to a driveway might be “charged” with model new charges beneath a main climate transfer, in accordance with a report. It comes after the London Climate Resilience Review steered that new prices might be launched for these with “impermeable” land on account of flood dangers. 

Usually, normal concrete and tarmac driveways are designed to be impermeable and forestall water from seeping by way of. These driveways are normally a strong, sealed floor, with water sitting on the highest as a substitute of soaking into the ground beneath. The report,   revealed 12 months in the past, claimed that charging highway customers would “disincentivise” homeowners from “paving over” any green space on their land. 

However, the move could be a setback for millions of road users who still rely on their vehicles daily. 

The report was first published back in July 2024, with the study commissioned by the Mayor of London.

The report read: “As more people are angered by their neighbours adding to local flood risk, one solution could be charging people based on the surface area of the land they own that is impermeable. 

“This would not only raise much-needed revenue to mitigate risks, but also disincentivise paving over gardens and other green spaces.”

The London Climate Resilience Review aimed to justify the idea of a charge by taking examples from other major cities that have similar fees. 

The study suggested that Melbourne Water in Australia charges all customers a waterways and drainage charge to fund maintenance. 

Meanwhile, the report also admitted that stormwater charges were found in many cities across the USA. There has apparently been a 10% fall in the amount of permeable land available in England from 2001 to 2022. 

The report added: “Grilles and permeable paving both require maintenance and often fill up with moss, weeds, dust and other matter. 

“This means they do not capture run-off, particularly during the heavy downpours, and cumulative effect of all these residential modifications is that the water is overwhelming drains and blocking roads.”

The Former Chair of the Environment Agency, Emma Howard-Boyd, previously suggested that “hard surfaces” were a major risk.

She explained: “There is a very, very clear link between the amount of hard surfaces that we now have across London, and an increase in surface water flooding.

“Water has to go someplace, and what we need to see is bigger sponginess….We would encourage people to look at and perceive the knock-on penalties if we’re all doing a little bit of this work to gardens.”

The Express has contacted the Mayor of London for remark.