I’ve written about my plan to TWIKE to the UK and that there had been some hiccups…and more hiccups. this has not dampened my enthusiasm and has been something I’ve looked forward to for months, but the admin side of things?
As mentioned … Let’s just say it nearly derailed the whole thing before it even began.
It all started when, as mentioned before, I realized that to enter London’s LEZ, ULEZ, and Congestion Charge (CC) zones with TW560, I’d have to register with Transport for London (TfL).
Sounds simple. It wasn’t. First hurdle: actually getting an account set up on the TfL website. For some reason, their system just didn’t want to cooperate with a Swiss-based vehicle owner. Several emails and support tickets and retries later, I was in.
Next up: vehicle registration. I had to submit all relevant paperwork to prove TW560 is the clean machine it is.
Now, this is where things got tricky. TW560 is a 25-year-old vehicle. Back in 2000, there was no such thing as a Certificate of Conformity (COC) for electric vehicles, and naturally, my Swiss registration document doesn’t mention electric propulsion. Why would it? It wasn’t even an official option back then… I’m registered in Switzerland ‘without regulated emissions’ / ‘ohne Abgasnorm’….which could also mean a Mr. Fusion Home Energy Reactor. 😉
This led to a completely absurd situation: yes, I now was allowed/registered and could technically enter London, but I’d have to pay the full LEZ, ULEZ, and CC charges. All because my ultralight, emissionless vehicle doesn’t fit modern processes!
And let’s face it, I wasn’t taking my TWIKE to London to avoid charges … I just expected fairness and the opportunity to take pictures.
And – I want those photos: TWIKE with Big Ben, TWIKE at Tower Bridge, TWIKE parked proudly near Buckingham Palace and gliding past the London Eye.
TfL was, in fairness, probably just following some pre-determined script. They asked for a certificate of conformity or a letter from the manufacturer’s homologation department. The letter had to include specific data: VIN, VRM, Euro standard, fuel type, NOx and PM values.
…Not a problem, unless your vehicle predates all of that and has no such data officially recorded.
But here’s where being part of the TWIKE community really paid off. I got in touch with the CEO of TWIKE GmbH… someone I’ve known for years and explained the situation. He didn’t hesitate and helped me right away: Over the weekend, I had a signed document from the “homologation department” with all the required details (that I provided them previously). Hand-prepared. From the source. That’s what I call support!
I submitted the letter via TfL’s online portal, expecting a long wait. But just four days later, I received confirmation: TW560 has been granted a full “clean vehicle” discount for the Congestion Charge!
So yes, I’m now officially registered and ready to explore London without restriction. This Sunday, Alan (a long-time blog reader, friend and London local) and I will set off on a photo tour of the city. I plan to take TW560 to every iconic location I can. If you see a strange three-wheeled vehicle quietly rolling through London’s landmarks — that’s us.
I’m genuinely happy to be taking some time off and heading across Europe with TW560 again. There’s something deeply satisfying about a low-impact, high-adventure road trip.
And as always, there will be live GPS tracking available on emissionless.ch during the trip. Check in to follow the route in real time.
#gogogo
More updates to come from the road, as with every trip.
If you want to meet up, let me know!