London mayor Sadiq Khan looks set to press ahead with plans to extend the capital’s low emissions zone and introduce a crackdown on the most polluting vehicles after a record number of people responded to the consultation held across July.
The public views will now be taken on to help shape the policies suggested in a more detailed 10-week consultation kicking off next month, with a view to implementation of some elements in 2017.
According to the mayor’s office, 79% of Londoners supported Khan’s proposal to bring forward the Ultra Low Emissions Zone introduction by a year to 2019, while 71% believed it should be expanded out to the boundaries designated by the north and south circular roads. Of less relevance to fleets is the view of 81% of respondents that pre-Euro4 emissions legislation vehicles – those registered before 2005 – should be subject to a £10 surcharge for entering the zone, while the idea of a Government diesel scrapage scheme also garnered a positive response.
“The equivalent of 9500 Londoners die each year as a result of the air they breathe in our city, I refuse to sit back and do nothing,” said Khan. “Both the previous mayor and the Government failed to get their act together to meet legal pollution limits and that’s why I have put forward some bold, hard-hitting measures to tackle this issue head on. I will consider the consultation findings in more detail before deciding on the next steps.”
Interestingly, respondents didn’t distinctly differentiate between pollution from petrol and diesel cars, with one percentage point more people saying private petrol cars contribute to air pollution a great deal or a little compared with the number pointing the finger at diesel cars, though both were seen more at fault than coaches or buses.
