LEZgetvehicle pollutionsorted
Drivers of older vehicles will find themselves on the scrapheap as Scotland’s city centres make a big move towards cleaning up their acts
SCOTLAND’S first Low Emission Zone (LEZ) is here. As of this week, the centre of Glasgow is taking a giant step to reduce air pollution and prevent old, inefficient vehicles entering the area.
Drivers have a year to get used to the idea – it won’t start being enforced until 2023. And people who live in the city centre have until 2024 to comply with the new rules.
It will affect petrol cars more than 16 years old, diesel models over seven years old, and older vans, buses and lorries.
There are already 200 LEZs across Europe. London has an ULEZ – an Ultra Low Emission Zone – and vehicles that don’t meet its standards have to pay £12.50 a day to drive in the centre.
Aberdeen, Dundee and Edinburgh are also officially LEZs but these won’t be enforced until 2024.
Here’s our guide to everything you need to know about LEZ’s.
WHY IS IT BEING INTRODUCED?
Air pollution in large parts of Glasgow, Dundee, Aberdeen, Perth and Edinburgh are breaking European legal limits, according to Friends of the Earth Scotland. They claim traffic-related pollution means about 2500 people a year are dying early from strokes, heart attacks and other causes.
HAS IT WORKED ELSEWHERE?
Berlin’s LEZ, introduced in 2008, reduced air pollution by 58 per cent in three years.
London has had an LEZ since 2008. It covers a large area of the Capital and applies to buses, lorries, and vans.
If the wrong vehicle enters the area, the driver faces a fine of £200, enforced using automatic number plate recognition technology. Buses emit 90 per cent less nitrous oxide than they did in 2016.
Cars were included in a smaller area of London in 2017 and in the full LEZ last year.
HOW WILL THIS AFFECT OUR CITIES?
The LEZ zone is bounded by the M8 at the west and south. To the east, it stops at the Saltmarket and High Street and its southern boundary is the River Clyde.
There is already an LEZ zone in this area for buses, introduced in 2018.
Motor bikes, mopeds and scooters are all allowed, as are fully electric cars. Blue badge holders and emergency vehicles are also permitted to drive in the LEZ.
Other vehicles need to meet certain standards to be allowed into the area. Most cars registered after 2006 and diesels registered after 2015 will be fine.
There are different rules for lorries and vans. Taxi drivers have been offered help to make sure their vehicles are ready for the LEZ.
Edinburgh’s LEZ is bounded by Tollcross in the south, Palmerston Place in the west and runs along Queen Street to Picardy Place. From there, the boundary goes around Abbeyhill, Holyrood Road and the Pleasance, ending at the Meadows.
The boundaries for Aberdeen’s LEZ are Schoolhill in the north, West North Street to the east, Virginia Street and Willowbank Road to the south and Holborn Street and Rose Street to the west. In Dundee, the A991 inner ring road will be the boundary of the LEZ.
WHAT IF I LIVE IN THE LEZ?
Residents are getting an extra year to prepare for the introduction of Glasgow’s LEZ. For the other three cities, there is no grace period for residents when the LEZs are introduced in 2024.