The Mayor of London has asked Transport for London (TfL) to consult on expanding the ULEZ in 2023. The move is seeking to build on the existing Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) and the tighter Low Emission Zone (LEZ) standards, which have reportedly reduced nitrogen oxide emissions by 30% across London.
The Mayor, Sadiq Khan, has also asked TfL to explore the scrapping of road user charges, such as the Congestion Charge and ULEZ, to be replaced with a ‘smarter, simpler and fairer’ scheme that charges motorists on a per mile basis. This could allow for different rates to be charged depending on how polluting vehicles are, the level of congestion in the area and access to public transport.
TfL is still many years away from being ready to implement such a scheme, so the expansion of the Ultra Low Emission Zone London-wide to the London LEZ boundary in 2023 is the preferred short-term solution. The rollout is subject to a public and stakeholder consultation including a full Integrated Impact Assessment.
The Mayor has also made a commitment to help charities, small businesses, disabled people and Londoners on lower incomes adapt to the potential London-wide ULEZ. This support will include a scrappage scheme to help motorists in outer London scrap their older, more polluting vehicles and instead switch to cleaner forms of transport, use a car club vehicle or purchase newer, cleaner models that are ULEZ-compliant. He will be calling on the Government to provide extra support for a scrappage scheme in London – similar to that seen in other cities around the country.
As with the existing road user charging schemes, including the ULEZ, LEZ and Congestion Charge, revenue from any new scheme will be spent on delivering the Mayor’s Transport Strategy, including local schemes to encourage and enable sustainable travel in London.
See the BVRLA’s Clean Air Zones page for information on current or planned zones in the UK’s cities.
