Millions of motorists ‘to pay thousands’ to drive into cities
Government suggests cities may introduce a charge for diesel drivers in a bid to improve their air quality.
Diesel drivers may have to fork out thousands of pounds a year extra in order to drive into some of the UK’s biggest cities as a result of new Government plans.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has published a new consultation document looking at ways to improve the air quality across the nation. And it highlighted that seven areas of England are on course to exceed European nitrogen dioxide limits, including London, Leeds, Derby, Nottingham, Birmingham and Southampton.
One of the ways Defra has put forward to tackle those high levels is to introduce “access restrictions for certain types of vehicles” from 2020.
In other words, if you drive a type of vehicle which will increase nitrogen dioxide levels, you may be charged to enter one of these city centres in your car.
What will you pay?
London officials have already said that from 2020 most diesel drivers will be charged £12.50 for entering the city’s ‘ultra low emission zone’. That’s on top of the existing congestion charge, which currently stands at £10.
The Defra consultation says that decisions on charges for the other cities named will be “locally led” though it is anticipated they will introduce something similar.
So if you work in one of these cities and tend to drive to the office, just how much will it cost you?
Let’s say that Birmingham introduces a £12.50 charge for diesel drivers too. If you drive into an office in the city every day, then over the course of a year you are looking at paying out around £3,000 a year to get to work, all because of your choice of vehicle.
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Road rage
Unsurprisingly, the news has provoked fury, with motoring groups pointing out that drivers had previously been encouraged to buy diesel vehicles because they produce less carbon dioxide.
A spokesman for the AA described the proposals as “unworkable”, saying that a more mature answer was needed than effectively banning diesels from city centres.
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The problem with nitrogen dioxide
According to the Government, nitrogen dioxide is responsible for around 23,500 deaths each year in the UK.
What’s more, the sources of nitrogen dioxide, like diesel vehicles, are also sources of ‘particulate matter’ which is responsible for a further 29,000 deaths each year.
The EU sets legally binding limits for certain pollutants in the air. The UK has been divided into 43 ‘zones’ for measuring pollutant levels. Back in 2013, 31 of those zones were found to be non-compliant with the limits, though that number will fall to eight by 2020 without further action according to Defra.
The only location outside of England set to miss the target is the South zone of Wales, as a result of a 500-metre stretch of road which exceeds the limit.
What do you think? Should drivers of vehicles that pollute the air be subject to additional charges? What other measures would you like to see introduced? Let us know your thoughts in the comments box below.
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Comments
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I have watched with dismay the way the Government has encouraged the use of diesel engines. Diesel is a filthy fuel and is extremely injurious to health. This may seem extreme but n my opinion diesel engines should be banned , not only for road vehicles, but for generators and rail traction applications too.
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I don't know why people are complaining. In fact I think the Tories should have changed the VED in the last budget so that cars are taxed on NOx rather than CO2 emissions. There has been loads of information broadcast about the dirt that diesel engines pump out – even the newest/cleanest ones. I switched back to driving a petrol powered car earlier this year as a responsible thing to do. Of course it's sod's law that petrol is currently more expensive than diesel but that is likely to change as soon as China's economy regrows. The UK currently imports most diesel from Russia and India, making us vulnerable to embargoes or the pressures of a rapidly growing Far East. Meanwhile our own oil refineries are being scrapped as they are geared to petrol production and cannot be adapted to produce diesel. As a nation we should move back to petrol as soon as possible.
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The biggest cause of pollution growth in cities is the 20mph speed limit. On environmental grounds, it is indefensible. A 30mph speed limit is much healthier and given that the towns that have introduced a 20mph limit seem to have an increased number of accidents, probably also safer.
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17 September 2015