London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone Already Bearing Fruits
On average, 9,400 fewer uncompliant polluting vehicles per day
The world’s first Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) with the most stringent emission standards has been introduced 8 April 2019 in central London – 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. As London’s poor air quality causes a high level of damage to people’s health, the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has taken a range of measures to reduce this health risk and therefore the causing costs of £3.7 billion every year. London’s ULEZ is one of these measures. Non-compliant cars, which don’t meet Euro 6 standards, have to pay £12.50 a day if they enter the ULEZ – lorries, buses and coaches even £100 a day.
Reduction of about 20 percent in NO₂ since February 2017
The results are already clear to see as a report unveils. 9,400 fewer uncompliant, older, very polluting vehicles on an average day enter the zone. 71 percent of all entering vehicles during congestion charging hours (7 am – 6 pm) comply with the required emission standards compared to 39 percent in February 2017 or 61 percent in March 2019. More and more people shift to cleaner or emission-free means of transport such as cycling and public transport or walking.
| Date | Number of vehicles driving in the charging zone per day during CC hours | Proportions of vehicles driving in the charging zone during CC hours | |||
| Total number of vehicles | Non-compliant vehicles | Compliant vehicles | Non-compliant vehicles | Compliant vehicles | |
| Feb – 17 | 102,493 | 62,310 | 40,184 | 60.8% | 39.2% |
| Apr – 19 | 89,380 | 26,195 | 63,185 | 29.3% | 70.7% |
| Change | -13,113 | -36,115 | 23,001 | Decrease of 31.5 percentage points | Increase of 31.5 percentage points |
| % change | -12.8% | -58.0% | 57.2% | -51.8% | 80.3% |
Average number and proportion of compliant vehicles detected in the zone per “typical” day during CC hours 17 February – 19 April
“Today’s report shows how bold action reaps rewards – just one month after launching the world’s first ULEZ, leading the way for cities around the globe, we have already seen a significant impact on the types of vehicles driving in the centre of our capital and polluting our air. These were big changes, and vital ones – our toxic air is an invisible killer responsible for one of the biggest national health emergencies of our generation,” the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, says. “It’s early days, but it’s great to see Londoners and businesses are doing their bit to make a difference, with nearly three quarters of the vehicles driving into central London each day now meeting the standards required to turn around this public health crisis. It’s vital this compliance is sustained to truly make a difference to our air quality, and as time goes on we will publish more research into the impact of the ULEZ, progressing this ground-breaking, life-saving work even further.”
