Massive new emissions zone will cost thousands of London drivers £12.50 a day

TENS of thousands of cars and vans face daily pollution charges of £12.50 in London as Mayor Sadiq Khan confirmed plans for a large-scale low emission zone.

The ultra- low emission zone, being brought in for central London in April 2019, will be expanded to the North and South Circular roads from October 2021, Mr Khan has announced.

It means polluting vehicles across the whole of inner London – an area 18 times greater than the central zone – will face a daily charge of £12.50 to drive in the area 24 hours a day, seven days a week all year.

Mr Khan made the announcement as he started a study of more than 3,000 primary school children in polluted areas of London and Luton, Bedfordshire, to see if policies to improve air quality help their health.

The charges across inner London will cover vehicles which do not meet certain emissions standards, including petrol cars more than 15 years old in 2021 and diesel cars more than six years old by that time.

The mayor also revealed plans to tighten standards for the most polluting heavy vehicles – buses, coaches and lorries – across the whole of London from October 2020.

An estimated 100,000 cars, 35,000 vans and 3,000 lorries might be affected by the expanded zone every day, City Hall said. Confirmation of the expanded ultra-low emission zone comes after research showed health damage from cars and vans in Britain costs the NHS and society £6 billion a year, with the bill in London £650 million.

Officials said expanding the zone and stricter standards for heavy vehicles across London would result in more than 100,000 Londoners no longer living in areas exceeding legal air quality limits in 2021, and all areas in the capital are expected to see reductions in pollution.

Mr Khan said: ‘Tackling London’s lethal air and safeguarding the health of Londoners requires bold action.’