What has Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, got against us motorists ( '£5 toll for using Heathrow Airport' Times, January 24)?

Not content with charging us to drive into London without providing a reliable, clean or safe alternative, he is now intending to charge us to drive into the airport.

While airport workers and those supplying Heathrow will be exempt, it is the weary traveller who will be asked to dig deep into their pocket.

We're talking about people who have already paid out for an expensive holiday, or those friends and relatives kind enough to drop off holiday-makers at the airport.

Very few people use Heathrow's perimeter roads as a short cut to get anywhere, so Ken can hardly justify claiming that it will help to ease congestion rather, it will shift it to other areas around the airport, as people seek to drop off people before the charge zone.

Ken's justification for seeking the £5 charge is that it will help to raise millions of pounds for key transport projects in the capital.

But the improvements he has been promising since becoming Mayor have yet to materialise, so why should we believe him now?

And, as Conservative GLA member Richard Barnes points out, many people driving to Heathrow are not from London and would get no benefit whatsoever.

He is also right in assuming that we see this plan as yet another tax. Think again, Ken.

G White

Uxbridge Road

Hayes