ULEZ expansion consultation – Assembly response

The Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) was introduced in April 2019 and most vehicles need to meet the ULEZ emissions standards or drivers must pay a daily charge to drive within the zone.

In October 2021, the ULEZ was extended to the North and South Circular boundary. This expansion covers 3.8 million residents and is eighteen times the size of the previous central London zone.

In March 2022, the Mayor announced plans for a London-wide expansion of the ULEZ to be launched in 2023. The proposal to expand the ULEZ scheme will see its boundary cover most of Greater London.

Today, the London Assembly Transport Committee has published its response to the ULEZ expansion consultation.

The Committee believes that those with mobility impairments should not be penalised and that the criteria currently proposed for an exemption to the scheme are too strict. The Committee therefore recommends that TfL should look again at the exemptions and work to establish and administrate exemption criteria that are more reasonable for disabled Londoners. 

Other recommendations include:

• That TfL considers covering the additional cost of replacing adapted and modified vehicles for disabled people as part of a future scrappage scheme. 
• That TfL considers a comprehensive scrappage package, with incentives to take up alternative ways of getting around through mobility credits, which could include free membership of car clubs and shared bike hire and additional travelcard value, to help Londoners to make more sustainable choices. 
• That TfL continues to consider the importance of introducing further measures to tackle the challenges of air pollution, the climate emergency, congestion, and safety caused by road traffic, and articulates more specifically in summary in its final proposals how existing plans will do so.
• That it is important that Londoners are involved in the development of any future road charging scheme at every stage, including in devising how the scheme will work, particularly those with protected characteristics, health concerns, a defined need to drive, or low incomes. 

Chair of the London Assembly Transport Committee, Siân Berry AM said: 
“The expansion of the ULEZ will need to come with the right mitigations for low-income Londoners, disabled people and small businesses.

“The Committee listened to evidence from Inclusion London, the Federation of Small Businesses, Mums for Lungs and the RAC Foundation before responding to the consultation and have recommended ways in which exemptions could be improved and the ways in which a comprehensive scrappage scheme could work.

“These proposals and any new road charging plans put forward in future consultations must also be supported by a clear indication of where any funding generated by schemes will be invested, and how it will support broader strategic goals. We have asked TfL to provide a clear assessment of costs and benefits alongside plans for any future scheme.

“We look forward to seeing revised text for the Mayor’s Transport Strategy proposals, which we will consider for a formal response.”