Pollution charge on London vehicles

LONDON Mayor Sadiq Khan plans to introduce a £10 charge on the owners of the most polluting cars that enter the congestion charge zone from next October.

Confirming he would press ahead with the fee, known as the T-charge, Sadiq Khan said: “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.

“That is why today, on the 14^th anniversary of the start of the congestion charge, I’ve confirmed we are pressing ahead with the toughest emission standard of any major city, coming to our streets from 23^rd October.”

The announcement came after fresh warnings this week about the poor quality of London’s air. The mayor spoke as he launched an online vehicle checker on the Transport for London website so drivers can check whether their vehicle will be affected by the T-charge, whose introduction coincides with the start of the autumn half-term.

The levy is expected to affect up to 10,000 of the oldest, most polluting vehicles every weekday – it will apply to motorists who own vehicles that do not meet Euro Four standards, typically those diesel and petrol vehicles registered before 2006.

It will operate on top of, and during the same times as, the congestion charge, meaning it will cost £21.50 per day to drive a pre-Euro Four vehicle in central London between 7am–6pm Monday to Friday.

London joins a growing number of cities around the world taking action against rising air pollution. In Paris, older more polluting vehicles are now banned between 8am–8pm on weekdays.

Khan launched a consultation on the T-charge proposals last July at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, whose chief executive, Dr Peter Steer, said at the time: “The mayor’s drive to clean up the capital’s air is fantastic news for our patients and staff. Children living in highly polluted areas are four times more likely to have reduced lung function in adulthood, yet improving air quality has been shown to halt and reverse this effect.”

Air pollution is believed to cause almost 40,000 premature deaths every year in Britain and was in April labelled a “public health emergency” by a cross-party committee of MPs.