Drivers are being advised to pay the Clean Air Zone charge in Bristol even if they haven’t entered the CAZ area - because the city council doesn’t have the capacity to check whether a motorist did or not.
Motorists - particularly those visiting the city who are less familiar with the boundaries of the Clean Air Zone - have contacted Bristol Live to report that requests to the council to find out if they are liable to pay the £9 charge are being turned down, with council officials telling motorists it’s their responsibility to work out if they did enter the zone or not.
Motorists have told Bristol Live that they feel the system being used in Bristol - which puts the onus on the motorist - is unfair, especially when compared to the way the Congestion Charge works in London, which allows motorists to set up an account which pays the charge whenever a registered vehicle enters the zone.
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One of several motorists who contacted Bristol Live about the situation said he had complained to Bristol City Council about the way he was treated when he drove to Bristol last month.
John Penny, an 81-year-old visitor from Australia, visited the city on April 11, and was warned in advance by the friend he was visiting that he would need to pay the Clean Air Zone if he entered it.
But, being unfamiliar with the city and the route he took to reach Ashton from London, he wasn’t sure if he had entered the zone, so contacted Bristol City Council to ask if his car had been clocked by the CAZ cameras on that day, and whether he needed to pay the £9. “I was not able to check on the satellite navigation the route I took,” he told Bristol Live. “I went online and sent an email to the council,” he added.
Noting that the council allows people six days to pay the CAZ charge after their trip, and avoid the £120 fine, he called the council two days later to find out if he had, but they couldn’t tell him. “A very helpful lady explained the system but was not able to check if I had entered the zone. The option was not to pay the £9 and await a letter stating that I now had to pay £120. This is a complete lack of transparency, and when I asked if I would get a refund if it was found that I had not entered the zone, she replied ‘no’. This is an outrageous system of extortion. I then paid the money and lodged a complaint form," he said.
“There was another surprise when, as an 81-year-old male, I was asked ‘had I had any gender realignment? I’m not sure how this question related to a car fine,” he said, adding that Bristol needs ‘a more honest system’.
Since the Clean Air Zone began at the end of November last year, Bristol City Council has told motorists it is up to them to work out if their vehicle is liable for the charge, and whether their journey on any given day included entering the Clean Air Zone, so they are liable to pay the £9.
The council does give the ability for people to pay in advance, and six days after any journey for people to pay, but there is no capacity in Bristol’s CAZ system to find out if the route a driver took included going into the Zone.
In London, drivers are able to set up an account which includes their bank details and their vehicle registration number, which then automatically triggers a payment whenever that number plate is photographed by the Congestion or ULEZ charge cameras.
A spokesperson for Bristol City Council explained that the London scheme has far more resources than those given to Bristol to set up such a system. “London’s Congestion Charge is well-established and massively resourced compared to Bristol’s and other similar Clean Air Zone schemes around the country, which have similar systems,” he said. “The system we have puts the onus on the driver to know whether they have entered the Clean Air Zone. We recognise people who are unfamiliar with the city’s roads may need to work that out after their journey, which is why there is the ability to pay after the journey is made, rather than automatically being fined straight away,” he added.
Bristol City Council’s website information about the Clean Air Zone does contain a link to the DVLA vehicle checker so people can see in advance - or afterwards - if their vehicle is liable for the charge, and does contain a detailed map of the CAZ itself.
The council warns motorists that if they pay the CAZ in advance and then don’t make the journey into it - there are no refunds.
“We don't give refunds if you paid the zone charge in advance but then didn't travel through the zone on that day. Only pay in advance if you are certain that you are going to travel into the zone,” a council spokesperson said.
“You will not be notified if you have driven in the zone and it's your responsibility to pay any charges,” they added. “There are road signs that tell you if you are approaching or entering the Clean Air Zone. These are at regular intervals as you approach the zone boundary. Signs have a clearly marked green cloud with the letter ‘D' inside,” they added.
Read more:
- Number of Bristol Clean Air Zone fines a mystery as council boss refuses to confirm figures
Bristol Clean Air Zone driver was fined six times before he realised commuter road was in zone
Tourist vows to boycott Bristol after being hit with CAZ fines
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