London’s ULEZ will be enlarged, says Khan

AIR QUALITY

London’s ultra-low emission zone will be extended up to the North and South Circular Roads in October 2021, London mayor Sadiq Khan has announced, following a consultation. Meanwhile, a stricter emission standard will apply to buses, coaches and lorries across the whole of London from October 2020.

The ULEZ will commence on 8 April next year, initially covering just the central London congestion charging zone. It will apply 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. 

The ULEZ standards are:

• Euro 3 for motorcycles, mopeds 

• Euro 4 for petrol cars, vans, minibuses and other specialist vehicles

• Euro 6 for diesel cars, vans and minibuses and other specialist vehicles

• Euro VI for lorries, buses and coaches and other specialist heavy vehicles

The standard of the existing London-wide Low Emission Zone, which covers buses, coaches and lorries, will be tightened to Euro VI from 2020.

Christopher Snelling, the Freight Transport Association’s head of UK policy, said the ULEZ plan would particularly hit small businesses. “While some large logistics operators will have mostly compliant fleets, the real losers here will be small companies reliant on their lorries or vans. Small firms tend to buy second-hand so will have older vehicles that do not reach the latest emissions standards.

“We all fully support the need to clean our air but the reality is the ULEZ is not a transformative measure – it only brings forward the air quality gain that was coming anyway by a few years, at a cost to the livelihoods of many small businesses in London.”

The FTA wants a limited sunset clause for operators based inside the expanded ULEZ, giving them more time to meet the requirements.