A car park in Ilford, east London, has become an unexpected final resting place for decommissioned black cabs, with the upper levels of Citi Park on Clements Road now presenting a haunting spectacle of the iconic London vehicles.
For countless people, the black cab is an iconic symbol of London, making the sight of them arranged in rows with punctured tyres, smashed windows, and dangling wing mirrors both disturbing and sorrowful. The situation carries mixed emotions, as passenger demand for cabs plummeted in 2020 while everyone remained confined indoors, falling to roughly 20 per cent according to the Licensed Taxi Drivers' Association (LTDA).
ULEZ and Emission Rules Force Cabs Out of Service
As restrictions eased, London's policy focus evolved, with authorities determining it was necessary to prioritise improved air quality for residents. The Ultra Low Emissions Zone (ULEZ), originally devised by Boris Johnson and introduced by Sadiq Khan in April 2019, proved instrumental in this transformation. Indeed, ULEZ has subsequently been extended.
Until October 2021, it remained limited to Central London, achieving a 20 per cent reduction in emissions, but it now encompasses all regions within the North and South Circulars. This requires vehicles to either satisfy the requirements or incur a daily fee of £12.50 - and the majority of vehicles produced before 2015 would be unable to meet these requirements.
Abandoned Taxis in Ilford Show Signs of Vandalism
A quick examination of the registration plates on the vehicles in the Ilford car park shows that most of the taxis present don't satisfy the requirements, which potentially accounts for why they've been abandoned in this vehicular cemetery. Some of the worst looking ones have clearly been vandalised after being left to decay, according to images from the site.
The car park, operated by CitiPark, has thus become a graveyard for these once-ubiquitous vehicles, a sight that is both unsettling and melancholic for passers-by.
Nearby Aircraft Boneyard Adds to the Eerie Landscape
If you fancy a spine-tingling adventure, head on over to this specific car park in Ilford. There's also a plane graveyard, if you can believe it, just outside London. Also referred to as an aircraft boneyard, it is situated between the Skylark Hotel and London Southend Airport - merely an hour's drive along the M25 from South London, and even nearer for residents of East and parts of North London.
This overgrown site, scattered with dusty, abandoned planes, occupies land thought to belong to the hotel and adjoins the airport. It's believed that some of these aircraft could hark back to the 1950s, according to our sister site EssexLive.
The Ilford car park and the Southend aircraft boneyard serve as stark reminders of how policy and economic shifts can leave once-essential vehicles to decay, with the black cabs' fate tied to the ongoing expansion of ULEZ and changing travel habits.
