Extra fee for polluting vehicles in London’s congestion zone to start this autumn

An emissions surcharge for older vehicles in London is set to be introduced this year.

London’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, has confirmed plans to introduce an additional fee to be placed on old polluting diesels in the Central London Congestion Charge Zone.

About 100,000 vehicles are expected to be affected by the surcharge, which is known as the “T-Charge”, and it will come into effect on 23 October, 2017.

It will apply to diesel and petrol-powered vehicles that do not meet the Euro 4 standard on emissions, which was introduced 11 years ago, and see an extra £10 added to the original congestion charge.

The T-charge will operate on top of, and during the same operating times, as the Congestion Charge (Monday to Friday 7am-6pm), so it will cost £21.50 to drive a pre-Euro 4 vehicle in the zone.

Natalie Chapman, FTA’s head of policy for London, commented: “It is incumbent on all of London’s road users to work together to reduce emissions in the capital, to help improve the city’s air quality.

“The freight industry has been meeting tougher emissions standards for nearly ten years, with transport companies complying with the London-wide Low Emission Zone.

“The announcement brings cars and the small minority of older more polluting vans and trucks into line with the LEZ requirements, and will undoubtedly benefit Londoners in health terms.”

Chapman continued: “The Transport for London website has all the necessary data, and we would urge operators to take action quickly, as they have little more than eight months to prepare for the zone’s introduction.”

Khan added: “It’s staggering that we live in a city where the air is so toxic that many of our children are growing up with lung problems. If we don’t make drastic changes now we won’t be protecting the health of our families in the future.

“The T-Charge is a vital step in tackling the dirtiest diesels before I introduce the world’s first Ultra Low Emission Zone as early as 2019.”