On 06/11/2012 14:58, tim..... wrote:

Why announce (now) a load of low tech, inconvenient, methods of paying if
you know that you are going to introduce a better one a few weeks later?

Because many people will want the options.

ISTM that if we are to have a database of registrations of car number
plates to credit/debit card accounts for post payment of tolls there should
be one national database for every toll that is collected (by a government
agency) this way (not a separate one for Dartford and another one for
London CC etc), so it will be easy for anyone who thinks that they might
want to use a tolled road somewhere in the country to know that they ought
to register, just in case.

That is about 20% of the population.

So the only people who it won't work for a

a) people who want to cheat the system by driving through and not paying

b) A small section of the population who really didn't get to hear about it.

c) almost everybody.