Khan urges motorists to check vehicles ahead of ULEZ

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has urged motorists to check whether their vehicles comply with new emissions standards, ahead of the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ), which comes into force in April.

The ULEZ will come into effect in the current central London Congestion Charge Zone on 8th April 2019 and will replace the current Toxicity Charge.

Vehicles will need to meet new, tighter exhaust emission standards or pay a daily charge (£12.50 for cars, vans and motorcycles, £100 for buses, coaches and lorries) to travel within the zone. The Congestion Charge will be unchanged by the introduction of ULEZ and will continue to apply for all eligible vehicles entering the Congestion Charge zone.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: ‘I know Londoners are passionate about improving the quality of the air they breathe so — with only three months to go before the launch of ULEZ – I’d encourage everyone who drives within central London to spend a couple of minutes checking whether their vehicle complies with the new emissions standards.

‘A predicted 45% fall in harmful emissions within the zone should be a great start to improving the lives of millions of Londoners.’

Drivers can use TFL’s online checking tool to see if their vehicle will meet ULEZ’s new emissions standards.

Transport for London (TfL) says they already contacted more than 2.5 million registered Congestion Charge users whose vehicles do not meet the ULEZ standards, to remind them the new zone begins on 8 April 2019. TfL is also contacting other drivers it identifies in central London whose vehicles are not currently ULEZ-compliant. They say there has been over 1.5 million visits to TfL’s online compliance checker so far.

3,000 businesses have been spoken to by TfL officials to make them aware of the introduction of ULEZ. Many of these businesses have confirmed that they are already ULEZ compliant or are putting in place plans to upgrade their vehicles.

Particular focus is now on the van and light goods vehicle sector. At a recent event hosted by TfL alongside the British Vehicle Leasing and Rental Association (BVRLA) concerns were raised over the number of vans on UK roads that are likely to be non-compliant with the ULEZ standard.

Speaking at the event, James Davis from Cox Automotive, told delegates that approximately 80% of vans currently on the UK roads would not be compliant with the standards required by the zone.

Scotland’s first low emission zone (LEZ) came into force in Glasgow on New Year’s Eve.

The first phase will mean 20% of all buses that pass through the city must now meet emissions standards that comply with EU standards.