Coming to a city near you?

29 June 2021

What do Birmingham and Bath have in common? Apart from the same initial letter, both have a Clean Air Zone (CAZ) and more cities plan to implement them later in 2021 and in 2022. 

There are four types of CAZ, progressing in comprehensiveness. Class A applies to buses, coaches, taxis and private hire vehicles; category B adds in heavy goods vehicles; C includes vans and minibuses; and D adds cars plus, at the discretion of local authorities, motorcycles. 

Bath’s scheme started on 15 March and is in Class C - so private vehicles are unaffected - while Birmingham’s officially commenced on 14 June and is in Class D. (London, of course, has operated its Low Emission Zone since 2008.) 

Basically, if your vehicle exceeds emissions standards, you pay a daily charge to drive into the Zone. There are some exemptions, such as for disabled tax class vehicles. 

Other English cities planning CAZs include Bristol (possibly October 2021), Portsmouth (autumn 2021), Bradford (January 2022), Manchester (possibly May 2022), and Newcastle. 

In Scotland, a Low Emission Zone (LEZ) already operating in Glasgow and covering buses is expected to include other vehicles by 2022. Other LEZs are anticipated in Aberdeen, Dundee and Edinburgh. 

Oxford plans to be the first city to operate a Zero Emission Zone (ZEZ), whereby only 100% zero emission vehicles could enter without charge. The intention is to introduce it in a very small city centre area this summer and extend it in spring 2022. 

So what’s the likely impact of such Zones in practical terms? Tomorrow I talk to the managing director of a hire company which is adapting its vehicle fleet and introducing new operational procedures to meet local CAZ requirements. 

More tomorrow. 

Picture: RAC