ULEZ - Ultra low emission zones for central and inner London

[kona786]

Another day another new tax.

It seems as though this is actually going to happen. It'll affect those in London who motor into central London but more surprisingly inner London too, inside the A406.

From what I've gathered its £12.50/day for Petrol cars Pre 2000 and Diesel Pre 2012/13. Motorcycles and Vans included.

This will affect me and my 20yo Celica. I travel to work by car inside the North Circ. There goes my intentions of owning anymore older cool cars pre 2000.

Anyone here heard and affected by this? It seems to be a ploy by the government to get older cars off the road. Though it's a bit harsh on people with Diesels not that old.

ULEZ is coming
To help improve air quality, an Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) will be in place in central London from 8 April 2019. Most vehicles including cars and vans will need to meet new, tighter exhaust emission standards (ULEZ standards) or pay a daily charge to travel within the area of the ULEZ.

From 25 October 2021, the ULEZ area will be expanded to include the inner London area bounded by the North and South Circular Roads.

You can pay the ULEZ daily charge from 8 April 2019. It will be:

• £12.50 for most vehicle types, including cars, motorcycles and vans (up to and including 3.5 tonnes)
• £100 for heavier vehicles, including lorries (over 3.5 tonnes) and buses/coaches (over 5 tonnes)

This will be in addition to the weekday Congestion Charge and the Low Emission Zone (LEZ) charge and will replace the T-Charge.

MAP

http://content.tfl.gov.uk/ulez-boundary-map-from-25-october-2021.pdf

CAR CHECKER

https://tfl.gov.uk/modes/driving/ultra-low-emission-zone/vrm-checker-ulez

 

[paradigm]

I’m not really sure that this is anything other than a good thing. City centre air quality (not just London) is terrible for the most part. Ridding the city centre streets of the most polluting vehicles seems like a good idea to me.

This is what the congestion charge should have been from the off IMO.

 

[Nasher]

It's greener to keep an old petrol car running than buy a new one every few years though.

 

[paradigm]

It's greener to keep an old petrol car running than buy a new one every few years though.

First off, it’s not every few years, this affects petrol cars that are 18+ years old (19 years old when this actually takes effect). Secondly the overall carbon footprint might be lower to keep an older car running (though with the 18+ years involved I’m not sure that’s true), but it certainly won’t help city centre air quality, which is the ultimate goal.

 

[Kaka]

I'm not affected and while I agree in most parts with the plans, TFL and train operators need to vastly improve train provisions before this can work well in the long term.

 

[kona786]

I’m not really sure that this is anything other than a good thing. City centre air quality (not just London) is terrible for the most part. Ridding the city centre streets of the most polluting vehicles seems like a good idea to me.

This is what the congestion charge should have been from the off IMO.

The thing is they're not just picking out the most polluting vehicles. Any and every pre 2000 petrol car will be charged. Thus a pre 2000 1.25 fiesta gets penalised, yet a 2001 e39 M5 won't. Its a little too broad brush stroke.

And this will be affecting a significant number of people, I'm surprised its actually happening.

 

[Nasher]

First off, it’s not every few years, this affects petrol cars that are 18+ years old (19 years old when this actually takes effect). Secondly the overall carbon footprint might be lower to keep an older car running (though with the 18+ years involved I’m not sure that’s true), but it certainly won’t help city centre air quality, which is the ultimate goal.

For now, but they are planning to make it cover more recent cars as well eventually. They already have their sites on current diesels as some of them are still pretty bad.

 

[Fusion]

This will become a template which regional cities will follow. Birmingham are looking at a similar charge to cover everything within the Middleway. ANPR technology is now so widely spread that it's only a matter of time before it's rolled out further. There is real uproar and concern about NOX levels in cities, and governments now are having to be seen to do more than just finger waving and providing the odd new Park & Ride service.

What I'd like to see is the revenue from these schemes recycled into new public transport links, to give new, faster, more reliable options for travelling into and around cities (or even road improvements, but this is very unlikely). I think we all know the odds on this happening, though.

 

[Nasher]

Public transport is even worse. One diesel bus kicks out as much pollution as a whole street of cars. They also make a hell of a racket.

 

[Fusion]

Public transport is even worse. One diesel bus kicks out as much pollution as a whole street of cars. They also make a hell of a racket.

Bus and rail travel are normally much more efficient than cars on metrics such as emissions per head, area/length required per passenger, etc. I was thinking electrified transport though- trams, light rail.

 

[Nasher]

Bus and rail travel are normally much more efficient than cars on metrics such as emissions per head, area/length required per passenger, etc. I was thinking electrified transport though- trams, light rail.

In places outside of major cities, buses often have a handful of people on them

For people outside of London, using a bus to commute costs more than driving. So people don't use them.

Most of the country has no worthwhile rail links either. Short-sighted governments sold them off and tore them up decades ago.

 

[Scania]

Public transport is even worse. One diesel bus kicks out as much pollution as a whole street of cars. They also make a hell of a racket.

Most modern busses are actually far more environmentally friendly than you may appreciate, they are derived from HGV’s which have to meet some of the strictest emissions standards of all vehicles.
In certain cases, a fully loaded articulated truck produces the same emissions as a VW Polo....

This may come as a surprise....



http://www.driving.co.uk/news/vw-polo-toxic-fully-laden-lorry/amp/

 

[Housey]

As an asthmatic I can confirm that air quality in London is awful. I live in the countryside and commute into many cities, but in London the air once I am down form more than 24 hours has me reaching for an inhaler, where anywhere else I don't and at home I never need it these days. Of course if you don't suffer from such an issue or are of a younger age then you will be fairly oblivious, even more so if it's all you know, but it doesn't change the fact. It's like all those chair threads recommending crap chairs like the Markus. It's when you have a bad back you notice a crap chair. If you don't have a bad back you won't notice it, but it doesn't change the fact it's still a crap chair.

Too many cars in London, too many taxis, too many busses and it needs fixing. For me the city (square mile) should be car free, taxi free and bus free. Make it fully pedestrianised and create points of entry and exit that mean drop offs are easy. There is enough money in the city to make it workable, weather resistant and better.

 

[Fusion]

This may come as a surprise....

Classic VW again

 

[Nasher]

VW/VAG isn't a great example to use

 

[Joe T]

It's greener to keep an old petrol car running than buy a new one every few years though.

Totally irrelevant in this case. And of course, twe're talking about air quality, not CO2. Do you even think before posting?

For now, but they are planning to make it cover more recent cars as well eventually. They already have their sites on current diesels as some of them are still pretty bad.

I think you mean "sights". And it wont be current 6.2 Euro diesels, not for a very long time. Do you even think before posting?

Public transport is even worse. One diesel bus kicks out as much pollution as a whole street of cars.

Not true at all. Unless the "whole street of cars" isnt moving.

And electric busses are coming. For example, China has 400,000 electric busses, and is adding around 5,000 new ones to the fleet every day. 5,000 is about the size of London's bus fleet...

Do you even think before posting?

 

[Nasher]

Do you? lol

1000s of buses in London fail EU standards by a LONG way. Even some of the newer diesels. Also where do you think all this electricity to charge the buses is coming from? (hint: it's not fairy dust).

 

[Matthew.M]

The only thing which concerns me about this is including Blackwall tunnel in the zone. This will push more traffic which wants to cross the river east of the centre out to Dartford which already can’t cope with current traffic levels.

Otherwise, great idea.

 

[Joe T]

Do you? lol

1000s of buses in London fail EU standards by a LONG way. Even some of the newer diesels.

That's not what you said originally. Also, some backup for your assertions would be useful.

I'm assuming you're referring to stuff like this:

From next year, all new double-deck buses will be hybrid, electric or hydrogen to focus on only buying the greenest, cleanest buses. In central London, all double-deck buses will be hybrid by 2019 and all single-deck buses will emit zero exhaust emissions by 2020. By 2037 at the latest, all 9,200 buses across London will be zero emission.

https://www.london.gov.uk/what-we-do/environment/pollution-and-air-quality/cleaner-buses

 

[Scania]

Classic VW again

The irony is I think the best they tested was a Passat (although probably cheating)

And Scania are owned by...... VW.