London will extend its road tax for polluting vehicles

Traffic conditions will get tougher in London for the most emitting vehicles. The city announced this Friday the extension, starting next summer, to the entire British capital of its circulation tax for the most polluting vehicles. At the same time, it aims to encourage the use of electric cars.

Restricted to central London when it was introduced in 2019, the ULEZ (ultra-low emission zone) had already been greatly expanded in 2021. London Mayor Sadiq Khan announced on Friday that he would extend it from August 29, 2023 to all of Greater London, where nine million people live.

In the midst of a cost-of-living crisis, introducing a new tax was “one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make,” he said, but air pollution is sickening Londoners “from the cradle to the grave.”

“In the end, public health counts for more than political expediency,” added the Labor mayor. “Five million more people will be able to breathe cleaner air.”

100 more ultra-fast charging points in the city

Meanwhile, Sadiq Khan on Thursday announced plans to keep London at the forefront of the electric car “revolution” by adding 100 ultra-fast charging points across the city. They can fully recharge a battery in 20-30 minutes.

According to the municipality, the capital has more than 11,000 charging points, that is, one for every four electric vehicles registered in London. The city also plans to create 4,500 jobs related to electricity development.

Electric cars are not affected by the expansion of the ULEZ zone.

This extension is “good news for the health of all Londoners. Air pollution affects children even before they are born and causes health problems throughout their lives,” the association “Mums for Lungs”.

£12.50 per day

Currently, drivers of petrol cars generally manufactured before 2006 (Euro 4 standard) and diesel vehicles generally manufactured before 2015 (Euro 6 standard) must pay £12.50 (€14.80) per day to enter the ULEZ zone. For trucks and coaches you have to pay 100 pounds (116 euros) per day. Taxis are exempt.

In addition to this tax, a “congestion charge”, an urban toll of £15 per day, is applied to all vehicles in the ultra-centre, in order to reduce traffic.

According to a 2019 report, air pollution caused 1,000 hospitalizations a year in London between 2014 and 2016.