Frustrated drivers have blasted the council for hitting them with Clean Air Zone fines when their vehicles are such low polluters that they don't pay road tax. Stephen Challis and his father, Michael, both from Neath in Wales visited the Bristol in March.
Stephen Challis said his 75-year-old father was driving a 2014 Peugeot 308 diesel 1.6 vehicle which falls into a zero road tax category when the pair drove from Wales to a motorcycle shop on Bath Road on 25 March. Stephen said: “I know of the clean air zone, but I don’t know much about it.
“In my mind, it was an inner city thing, so we skirted around the edge and I didn’t realise we were in the clean air zone,” he said. But then his father received a CAZ fine in mid-May.
Stephen said: “His car is £0 road tax, so why should he pay to enter a low emission zone ? I can’t understand it.”
He added that his father promptly paid the fine. Stephen said: “He paid it early and then got told he must still also pay the £9 which he should have paid to go through the clean air zone. It’s madness.
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“It’s the first time I’ve been to Bristol in a long time, nowadays you’ve really got to take note of what and where you’re driving otherwise you’ll get caught. I’ve heard that actually driving down certain roads in the city centre is also being stopped,” said Stephen.
The Penalty Charge Notice details the make of the vehicle as ‘Unknown’. On the Bristol City Council website, it states that diesel vehicles which will be exempt from a CAZ charge are “Euro 6 roughly end of 2015 onwards.”
Bristol City Council's website information about the Clean Air Zone contains a link to the DVLA checker so people can see in advance, or after a journey, if their vehicle is liable for a charge ad does contain aa detailed map of the CAZ boundaries. The council also warns motorists that if they pay a CAZ fee in advance and don't make the journey, there are no refunds.
A spokesperson for Bristol City Council said: “Bristol’s Clean Air Zone emissions standards will ensure that the city meets the requirement from government to bring air pollution within legal limits in the shortest possible time. We have always been clear that drivers should use the vehicle checker before travelling to find out if they need to pay a charge for their chosen route.
"The parameters for which vehicles are charged for travelling in the Clean Air Zone are set by the UK Government and not the council. Payment plans are available to help people manage Penalty Charge Notice payments if they are facing financial difficulty.
"Those who think they have received a Clean Air Zone PCN in error or have mitigating circumstances can submit an appeal. Each appeal will be assessed based on its own merit.”
She added that the minimum emission standards for Clean Air Zones are Euro 4 petrol and Euro 6 diesel. Euro emissions standards are used as the zone’s emission standards because they provide emissions data specific to nitrogen dioxide which is harmful to our health.
Vehicle Excise Duty is worked out by the DVLA using carbon dioxide emissions data and is therefore not linked to whether a vehicle meets the zone’s emission standards. For more information on how Vehicle Excise Duty works please contact the DVLA via GOV.UK or by calling 0300 790 6802. Their opening hours are Monday to Friday 8am-8pm and Saturday 8am-4pm.
