£2,000 scrappage scheme for city centre workers
PEOPLE working within Birmingham’s Clean Air Zone (CAZ) from June will be able to scrap their old car and receive £2,000 credit towards a less polluting vehicle.
Birmingham City Council has announced it will be working with independent car retailer Motorpoint on the scrappage scheme.
Anyone working within the A4540 Middleway Ring Road and earning less than £30,000 can put their noncompliant vehicle forward to be scrapped and in exchange get £2,000 off a car from Motorpoint.
Motorpoint, which has branches in Aston and Oldbury, sells used vehicles, including cars under four years old and with less than 30,000 miles.
Alternatively, drivers can opt to receive £2,000 of credit for public transport in the form of a Swift Travel Card. The scheme will be open to people who have been the registered keeper of a vehicle that does not meet the emission standards for the Clean Air Zone so would be subject to the daily fee.
They also have to work for at least 18 hours a week at premises within the Clean Air Zone boundary and earn less than £30,000 a year.
And they must have been the registered keeper of the vehicle since September 10, 2018.
Applications for the scrappage scheme will open prior to the CAZ launch on June 1.
The council has said those who have registered an expression of interest through the Brum Breathes website will be first to be notified of the scheme launching.
Those who work for a minimum of 18 hours per week in the CAZ and earn less than £30,000 per year will also be eligible for a one-year exemption from June 1 and can apply now via the website.
People living within the CAZ will be eligible for a two-year exemption.
For cars, taxis and vans the charge is £8 per day, while HGVs, coaches and buses will be charged £50 per day.
Stephen Arnold, head of the Clean Air Zone, said: “We are continuing to take expressions of interest in the scheme through the Brum Breathes website and we expect to be able to accept full applications shortly.
“In the meantime, we are encouraging city centre workers who may qualify for this scheme to also apply for a temporary exemption permit so that their existing vehicle will not be subject to the charge when the zone launches on 1 June this year.”