Key information
Request reference number: MGLA210125-8563
Date of response:
Summary of request
Your request
...it would be interesting to see a chart where it shows both that the airports pay a fine like us motorist have too along with showing me some documented evidence, that the air that we are paying to clean is actually working . I am curious please enlighten me does the air automatically clean itself once l have paid. If so please send me details of how this is achieved.
Our response
- Airports
Road transport is the largest individual source of both NOx and local PM2.5 emissions, and one of the largest contributors to CO2 emissions in London, which is why this is where the Mayor has focused his efforts. It is also the area where the Mayor has the strongest statutory powers and a track record of delivering effective policies.
The Mayor does not have jurisdiction over aviation. Policies regulating aviation, including carbon and air pollutant emissions associated with it, sit with national government and relevant national bodies.
The Mayor has been clear that the UK must take all possible steps to accelerate decarbonisation of aviation if we are to successfully tackle the climate change emergency. The Mayor and GLA officers have made, and will continue to make, representations to Government, regulators, airports and others to seek a meaningful path to decarbonisation and a suitable regulatory framework to drive this.
Every sector must play its part in improving air quality and meeting the net zero carbon target and aviation is no exception. The Mayor has recently restated his opposition to a new runway at Heathrow Airport because of the severe impact it will have on noise, air pollution and meeting our climate change targets.
The Mayor has done all he can to set clear and rigorous criteria for any expansion plans for London’s airports, through Environment and Transport Strategies, as well as the London Plan. These rightly set a very high bar for any proposals for any expansion.
You may be interested in the Mayor’s response to the Government’s consultation on ‘Jet Zero’, its aviation carbon strategy, in which he sets out his views on ways to reduce both carbon emissions and air pollutant emissions related to aviation. It is available here: Response to Government consultation on net zero aviation carbon emissions (tfl.gov.uk)
- Use of ULEZ revenue
It is a statutory requirement that any net revenue generated by Transport for London’s (TfL) road charging schemes (the ULEZ, Low Emission Zone or the Congestion Charge) is reinvested back into London’s transport network for purposes that directly or indirectly facilitate the implementation of, or any policies or proposals set out in, the Mayor’s Transport Strategy. Some of the programmes that the London-wide ULEZ net revenue will be spent on are detailed in the Four-Year General Programme published on the TfL website: lez-four-year-programme-final.docx (live.com)
More general information about TfL’s income and expenditure is reported in its Annual Report and Accounts, the latest copy of which can be found on the TfL website: Annual Report and Statement of Accounts 2023/24 (tfl.gov.uk)
TfL is the Mayor's transport authority and is responsible for implementing the Mayor's Transport Strategy, and for the design, procurement, delivery and operational running of road user charging schemes such as the ULEZ. You may wish to send a further request to TfL at [email protected].
- London-wide ULEZ impacts
The ULEZ is highly targeted at getting the most polluting vehicles off our streets. Expanding the ULEZ across all London boroughs strikes the best balance between maximising the health and environmental benefits for Londoners while minimising the cost to drivers especially as the cost of living increases. The latest data shows that 96 per cent of vehicles seen driving in London on an average day meet the standards, meaning their drivers do not have to pay the charge. Nearly half of London households do not own a car but are disproportionately feeling the damaging consequences that polluting vehicles cause.
Preliminary analysis in the London-wide ULEZ Six Month Report showed that:
- Nitrogen oxides (NOX) emissions from cars and vans in outer London are estimated to be 13 per cent and 7 per cent lower compared to a scenario without the ULEZ scenario.
- There has been a saving of 424 tonnes of NOX in outer London.
- PM2.5 exhaust emissions from cars and vans in outer London are estimated to be 20 per cent lower than they would have been had we not expanded ULEZ to outer London.
- These emissions reductions are improving air quality. In the first six months of operation, roadside nitrogen dioxide (NO2) concentrations in outer London were up to 4.4 per cent lower than would have been expected without the London-wide ULEZ expansion.
- All ULEZ policies in total have had a dramatic impact on improving air quality across the capital. Harmful roadside NO2 concentrations are estimated to be:
- 21 per cent lower in outer London than they would have been without the ULEZ and its expansions.
- 53 per cent lower in central London than they would have been without the ULEZ and its expansions.
- 24 per cent lower in inner London than they would have been without the ULEZ and its expansions.
The above figures will be updated in the upcoming London-wide One Year Report, due to be published in spring 2025. This report will provide a fuller analysis of both emissions and concentrations, compliance levels and traffic, including borough-level analysis and impact on disadvantaged groups.