Should D.C. Adopt London-Style Congestion Tax?

London has it, and traffic in the center city is down by nearly half. New York is considering it, wowed by the possibility of thinning the city's legendary jams. Now, Washington is talking about imposing a congestion tax, a daily fee for bringing a car into the District's downtown.

London is the primo example of congestion charging. To drive into central London, you must pay about $16 a day. This has proven to be enough of a disincentive to take a car into the central city that congestion is down by 26 percent since the program was launched in 2003. The tax raises about $244 million a year, most of which is spent on improving bus service in the restricted zone. Independent studies say the congestion tax has had a neutral effect on retail and other business in the central city and no adverse impact on roads just outside the congestion zone.

The need in Washington is clear: The D.C. suburbs have the second-longest average commuting time in the nation, after New York. Maryland commuters sit through an average of 30.8 minutes of traffic on the way to work; in Virginia, Prince William County drivers suffer an average commute of more than 40 minutes.

And the alternatives necessary for non-drivers exist here: Washington has the nation's third-highest usage of public transit, after New York and San Francisco. But there are serious questions about capacity with Metro: As riders know, the system strains to handle the crowds it already carries.

Unlike London or New York, a congestion tax here would serve more than one purpose; it would not only control the flow of traffic, but it would also be an answer to the single greatest fiscal frustration facing the District: its inability to impose a commuter tax on suburbanites who earn their living in the city.

D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty, who raised the idea, was noncommittal about whether he will push for a congestion tax. And suburban politicians aren't likely to embrace the idea for fear that their constituents might get riled up about it. Powerful interests would oppose the idea. But the evidence from London indicates that business interests have little to fear from congestion taxing, which, by the way, is in effect only from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays, so nightlife and cultural and sports events are not affected at all.

So, is it time for a D.C. congestion tax?