London ULEZ to start in April 2019

The London ultra-low emission zone will come into operation in on 8th April 2019 covering the central London area and replacing the recently introduced in T-Charge.

The ULEZ will operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week. There will also be two charge levels: £100 a day for lorries, buses and coaches; and £12.50 a day for vans, cars and motorbikes.

These charges will be in addition to the Congestion Charge (C-Charge), so the more polluting cars and vans would pay £24 per day and lorries would pay £111.50 during C-Charge hours.

Transport for London expects the ULEZ to affect up to 60,000 vehicles every day, compared to the estimated 6,500 a day affected by the T-Charge.

Diesel vehicles that do not meet the Euro 6 standards and most petrol vehicles that do not meet the Euro 4 standard will have to take action or pay.

TfL said that broadly, a four-year-old or newer diesel car would meet the requirement in 2019 when the scheme comes into force.

Road transport emissions in central London are expected to reduce by an additional 20 per cent in 2019 as a result of the early introduction of the ULEZ. This includes:

– NOx emissions from HGVs are expected to reduce by nearly 50 per cent.

– Coach and non-TfL bus emissions will reduce by more than a third.

– Emissions from cars and vans are expected to reduce by eight and 12 per cent respectively.

The ULEZ benefits should be even greater by 2020 with an estimated 45 per cent reduction in road transport emissions.

Mayor Sadiq Khan said: “I am pleased to confirm that from 8th April 2019 – 17 months earlier than planned – stricter standards for diesel vehicles will apply 24/7 across central London. This builds on the success of the T-Charge and is part of my comprehensive plan to clean London’s air.”