London Mayor’s war on pollution

  • October 23 2017: Additional £10 T-Charge starts  in C-Charge zone for cars and vans pre-Euro 4 (approx pre-2006)
  • T-Charge to apply weekdays in C-Charge hours
  • Consultation starts April 4, 2017, on plan for ULEZ to supersede T-Charge effective April 8, 2019 in existing C-Charge zone
  • ULEZ fee (in addition to C-Charge) to apply 24 hours a day, 365 days a year
  • Applies to petrol vehicles that don’t meet Euro 4 and diesel vehicles that do not meet Euro 6
  • ULEZ daily fee £12.50 for cars, vans and motorbikes; £100 for buses, coaches and HGVs
  • Summer 2017: Consultation on plan to expand ULEZ across Greater London out to South and North Circular roads in 2020 for heavy diesel vehicles such as buses, coaches and lorries
  • Greater London ULEZ to apply to cars and vans from 2021

SOME vans that are less than a year old now will be hit by a new daily toxic air charge every day of the year in London from 2019 while many older vans must pay from this October in a new timeline for the Mayor of London’s accelerated war on pollution.

The most-polluting vehicles, classified as those not conforming to Euro 6 emissions which only became mandatory for diesel vans registered from September 2016 and petrol vehicles pre-2006, will have to pay a daily charge to drive within central London from 8 April 2019 under bold proposals announced today by Sadiq Khan to help combat the capital’s toxic air crisis.

Previous Mayor Boris Johnson had proposed the ULEZ to be introduced from 2020.

Sadiq Khan is proposing to expand this charge, the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ), across Greater London for heavy diesel vehicles, including buses, coaches and lorries, in 2020, and up to the North and South Circular roads for cars and vans in 2021.

And he accompanied the launch of public consultation on his plans with a fresh call for the Government to introduce deterrent road tax changes and a nationwide scrappage scheme to rid the country of the most polluting vehicles.

Only last week he announced a new independent vehicle checker database, being developed through Transport for London, which will highlight the worst polluting vehicles – the target of the new charges.

The Mayor is committed to taking ambitious action to protect Londoners from the damaging health impacts of air pollution. He has more than doubled funding spent on tackling air quality to £875 million over the next five years.

The Mayor has already confirmed the £10 T-Charge announced in February, which will start in October this year. He is now proposing, following the public consultation, that this will be replaced by the introduction of the world’s first Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) in central London from Monday 8 April 2019. The ULEZ in 2019 will cover the same area as the existing congestion charging zone.

Petrol vehicles that don’t meet Euro 4 standards and diesel vehicles that do not meet Euro 6 standards will have to pay a ULEZ daily fee (£12.50 for cars, vans and motorbikes; £100 for buses, coaches and HGVs) to drive in the zone, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

As an approximate guide, petrol cars more than 13 years old in 2019, and diesel cars more than 4 years old in 2019, will not meet the new standards. The total cost, with the congestion charge added (during the times of day it is applicable), for motorists with non-compliant cars will be £24 a day.

The ULEZ will apply to all vehicle types, except black taxis. It is estimated that introducing ULEZ in central London will result in nearly a 50 per cent reduction in road transport NOx emissions in 2020.

Once the Mayor has finished consulting on the current ULEZ proposals in June, he wants to start consulting on actions that go even further. This would include expanding the ULEZ across a larger area, to cover nearly all of Greater London. This expanded zone would apply to heavy diesel vehicles such as buses, coaches and lorries and it would be implemented in 2020.

Following that, the Mayor wants to go even further still and consult Londoners on extending the ULEZ area applying to light vehicles, such as cars, vans, minibuses and motorcycles up to the North / South Circular road. This would be implemented in 2021.

He argues that these timescales would provide Londoners, motorists coming into the capital from elsewhere and businesses which will be affected, sufficient time to take the necessary steps to prepare for these new standards. They also reflect the minimum amount of time needed for TfL to consult on and implement such technically complex schemes over such large parts of London.

Sadiq Khan said: “The air in London is lethal and I will not stand by and do nothing. Today I’m announcing bold proposals which are critically needed to safeguard Londoners from our air quality health crisis.

“I am introducing a new T-Charge this October and subject to consultation, I want to introduce the Ultra Low Emission Zone in central London in April 2019. This alone will mean the capital has the toughest emission standard of any world city.

‘But the scale of our air quality challenge is so big that I need to go further. I want to expand the ULEZ from 2020 for heavy vehicles such as buses, coaches and lorries so that all of London will benefit from cleaner air. Then from 2021, I want to expand it up to the North and South Circular roads for light vehicles, including cars and vans. These measures will help improve the air that millions of Londoners breathe.

More information and have your say

  • There will be ‘sunset periods’ for residents of the zone and for vehicles with a disabled or disabled passenger tax class
  • To take part in the public consultation click here
  • For more information on ULEZ click here. Note TfL still has the introduction date 2020
  • For details of which vehicles comply with ULEZ click here. Note TfL still has the introduction date 2020

“I want to announce my intention to consult on these proposals in good time so that business and those affected by new charges will have time to make changes they need to adapt to our low emission requirements.

“Now I urge the Government to step up and match my ambition to transform the appalling air we breathe. Ministers need to deliver a national vehicle scrappage fund, reform fiscal incentives like vehicle excise duty and pass a powerful new Clean Air Act to Act end the toxic smog in London once and for all.”

Each scheme will be subject to consultation and the Mayor is committed to listening to Londoners’ views. The consultation on the Mayor’s proposal on bringing forward the start date of the central London ULEZ will launch on 4 April 2017 and run until 25 June 2017. Other proposals will be consulted on later this year.

The Mayor is working with TfL to ensure London’s public transport fleets lead the way in low emission technology. TfL will no longer procure double deck pure diesel buses from 2018 and instead only buy hybrid, electric or hydrogen buses. All new taxis will need to be zero emission capable from next year and new private hire vehicles will need to follow suit from 2020.

Cllr Julian Bell, London Councils’ executive member for transport and environment, said: “London Councils supports measures to continue to address poor air quality in the capital, which we know is a major concern for many Londoners, and welcomes the Mayor’s pledge to listen to the consultation responses received. It is vital for national, regional and local governments to work together, alongside our residents, to help clean up our city’s filthy air and improve health and quality of life.”

Jonathan Grigg, Professor of Paediatric and Environmental Medicine, Queen Mary University of London said: “The Mayor of London is to be congratulated in bringing forward the date of the ULEZ. Reducing diesel emissions in the congestion charge zone will reduce exposure to toxic soot particles and gases. To maximise the effectiveness of this initiative, the Government must now act to remove the current toxic fleet of diesel cars, vans and buses from all our roads.”

Road Haulage Association warning on £100 fines

      Fine trucks and everyone will pay warned the RHA in response to the Mayor’s announcement of a £100 fine for pre-Euro 6 trucks.

“Of course we all want a cleaner London,” said RHA chief executive Richard Burnett. “But don’t let the Mayor’s quest for clean air turn the nation’s capital into a ghost town.

“The thousands of restaurants, shops and tourist attractions that make London one of the world’s major tourist centres are massively reliant on an efficient delivery network. That must not be jeopardised”.

“Euro-6 engine technology is, in effect, a clean air plant – the air that emerges from the exhaust is actually cleaner than the air that goes in. The majority of hauliers entering the capital on a regular basis are already using trucks that meet the Euro 6 standard – but many are not.

“They will be facing an additional £24K per year in fines. Many will be forced out of business while others will have no alternative but to pass the additional cost on to their customers. The knock on effect will be an increase in prices for consumers, including the millions of tourists that come to London each year.”

 

London Mayor's war on pollution

A van this old will be charged £21.50 a day to drive in central London from October

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