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Check your vehicle tool

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London boroughs insist on going ultra-low

No-go zones

Nine streets in Hackney and Islington are being converted into ultra-low emission zones from March 2018. Streets in Tower Hamlets will follow suit (see The next step ). This means that petrol and diesel vehicles will be banned from entering them unless they pay a fine for doing so.

What are the details?

Only ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEVs) emitting less than 75g/km of CO₂ will be permitted in the zones between 7.00am and 10.00am, and 4.00pm and 7.00pm, Monday to Friday.

ULEVs are the least polluting vehicles on the market. They include all-electric and hydrogen vehicles and some of the cleanest hybrids. Transport for London has produced a tool to check if your vehicle will meet the zone standard (see The next step ).

Existing charges

London already has financial penalties in place to stop polluting vehicles from entering the capital. The Congestion Charge applies to central London and the new £10 T-Charge applies to all pre-2006 diesel vehicles. The London Borough of Islington also plans to charge diesel vehicle drivers an extra £2 per hour to park in the Borough from early 2018.

Better air quality

Known as the City Fringe Ultra Low Emission Streets project, this latest move is designed to cut pollution and make it safer for pedestrians and cyclists. Residents can register to be exempt from the commuter-time ban. Ultimately, town planners want to reclaim the neighbourhoods from parked vehicles and traffic congestion and transform them into the most attractive areas of London.

Headlines created by the recent King’s College London report, which estimated that 10,000 Londoners die early every year because of poor air quality caused by road traffic, has led to more local government policy that doesn’t favour drivers.

In time...

While these first zones have been chosen because they’re deemed to be areas of high pollution and important commuter routes for pedestrians and cyclists, this is likely to be only the start of efforts to curb traffic entering the Greater London area.

Automatic number plate recognition technology will make it impossible to avoid being fined £130 should you enter the restricted areas during the hours of operation. Unregistered vehicles will automatically be issued with a penalty notice.

You will have to look out for the street signage to make sure you don’t enter the areas accidentally because there will be no major physical changes to the streetscape.

Tip. If driving in Central London is important to your business, it’s probably time to consider your options for upgrading to ULEVs otherwise it is only going to get more expensive to access the main streets of the capital.

For a link to further information on the ultra-low zone and the Check your vehicle tool, visit http://tipsandadvice-environment.co.uk/download (EN 12.09.03).