Abstract: As one of the most effective solutions to relieving traffic congestion， congestion charging has been applied in the developed regions widely. Based on the data from Tokyo， London， Singapore， Hong Kong and some other regions where the policy has made remarkable achievements， the content， strategy and background of traffic congestion charging were analyzed. The results indicated that the implementary preconditions of congestion charging include the levels of economic and social development， the quality of public transport service and the modernization degree of urban management. Furthermore， a tentative assessment framework of three dimensions and nine indexes was proposed to analyze whether congestion charging applies to Shanghai both in policy and in practice.

Key words: traffic congestion charging, policy foundation, feasibility analysis