More than 1,600 drivers were fined for not paying Newcastle’s Clean Air Zone (CAZ) charge in its first month of operation.
Council officials have confirmed that 1,658 motorists were hit with penalty charge notices (PCNs) for bringing a non-compliant vehicle into the CAZ without paying the toll from its launch on January 30 until the end of February. Some older, high-polluting vehicles that do not meet certain environmental standards are now subject to daily tolls of either £12.50 or £50 to come into Newcastle city centre, under efforts to slash illegal levels of roadside emissions.
The charges apply to older buses, coaches, taxis, and lorries for now – with tolls for vans due to start this summer, but all private cars being exempt. Newcastle City Council said that there were 1,476 journeys successfully paid for in the first month of the CAZ – fewer than the number of fines issued.
