Enlarged congestion charging zone, central London, England. The congestion charge zone was introduced on 17th February 2003 as a way to raise funds for improvements in London's public transport and to ease the traffic in the city centre. It currently covers the London Inner Ring Road, which includes the whole of the City of London and the West End. In February 2004, it was proposed that the zone should be extended west (seen here) to cover the whole of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Despite the unpopularity of this idea, it is thought that the extension will take effect sometime in 2007.