Older cars hit with T-charge in London

LONDON Mayor Sadiq Khan yesterday introduced a £10 ‘T-charge’ on older, more polluting vehicles in the capital. The toxicity charge, which comes on top of the congestion zone charge, means some cars will have to pay £21.50 to drive in central London, or face a £130 fine. Councils across Britain will now be looking carefully at the impact of the fee, which is designed to tackle the chronic high levels of air pollution in London. Local authorities have been instructed by the government to come up with their own proposals to reduce air pollution. The daily charge is expected to affect around 34,000 motorists a month, according to the mayor’s office. It applies to high pollution vehicles registered before 2006 – those that do not meet ‘Euro 4’ exhaust emissions standards. Last night Julian Knight, Tory MP and chair of cross party motoring campaign group FairFuelUK, said: ‘These toxicity charges often hit some of the poorest and hardworking members of our society.’ But environmental campaigners have urged councils to follow London’s example. Air pollution has been linked to around 9,000 premature deaths in London alone each year, often related to heart attack and stroke.