FOI - ULEZ evidence behind public statements [Mar2023]

Your request

1. What criteria has been adopted by TFL to indicate to a customer that their vehicle is  ULEZ compliant? 
2. It has been said "The Mayor of London has pledged to expand the ULEZ zone to cover all of Greater London by August 29. He argues the expansion will result in cleaner air for five million Londoners and save the lives of 4,000 people a year." Please supply the under FOI the evidence TFL have that once ULEZ is in place in the Greater London Area 4000 lives will be saved. Is the 4000 lives saved by the end of: 1st year/ 3rd year or 6th year.  If the 4000 lives are saved over another period please specify
3. Please supply the research that states that the most polluted place is on your car. 

Our response

This information is publicly available. As set out on the Transport for London website, to meet the ULEZ standards, a vehicle must meet the required Euro emission standard for the vehicle and emission type. 

The ULEZ standards are: 

• Euro 3 for motorcycles, mopeds, motorised tricycles and quadricycles (L category)
• Euro 4 (NOx) for petrol cars, vans, minibuses and other specialist vehicles
• Euro 6 (NOx and PM) for diesel cars, vans and minibuses and other specialist vehicles

Drivers can check whether their vehicles meet the ULEZ standards using TfL’s free online 
vehicle checker: Check your vehicle (tfl.gov.uk)

The figure of 4,000 premature deaths in London being attributable to air pollution was a 
finding from the London Health Burden of Current Air Pollution and Future Health Benefits of Mayoral Air Quality Policies review, which was commissioned by the GLA and produced by the Environmental Research Group at Imperial College London. The full report is available on the GLA website:

The forecast number of deaths that would be prevented by London-wide ULEZ is set out in 
Chapter 6.2 of the ULEZ Integrated Impact Assessment (IIA) that can be found here: 
https://haveyoursay.tfl.gov.uk/15619/widgets/58629/documents/34537

You may also be interested in the Air Quality Health Impact Assessment (AQHIA) which can be found in Appendix A of the IIA.

There have been a number of scientific studies looking at air pollution exposure in vehicles, 
including exposure of people commuting by car and professional drivers. These studies have shown that people travelling in vehicles are among the highest exposed to pollution. 

The below represent a selection of these studies: 

• Personal air pollution exposure during morning commute car and active transport journeys - ScienceDirect
• Taxi drivers’ exposure to black carbon and nitrogen dioxide in electric and diesel vehicles: A case study in London - ScienceDirect
• A review of commuter exposure to ultrafine particles and its health effects - ScienceDirect