Sheffield has become the latest city to implement a clean air zone, which it hopes will tackle an estimated 500 deaths a year ascribed to pollution.
From Monday, the most polluting commercial vehicles will have to pay a daily charge of £10 for older taxis and vans, or £50 for older buses, coaches and HGVs, to enter a zone covering the city centre and inner ring road. Private cars will be exempt from the charge.
The launch of the zone comes a month after Newcastle and Gateshead implemented similar schemes, and means Sheffield becomes the eighth English city to charge drivers of older diesel vehicles to improve air quality.
Sheffield was directed by the government to implement its new clean air zone to reduce pollution, after years of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) levels in the city being shown to exceed legal limits.
London
Ultra-low emission zone (Ulez) launched April 2019 in central congestion zone; extended October 2021; due to cover Greater London from August.
Noncompliant private cars, vans and taxis pay £12.50 a day. Older lorries and buses pay under the London-wide low emission zone, launched in 2008 and increased to a daily charge of £100 in 2021.
Bath
Clean air zone (CAZ) over a wide central area since June 2021. No charge for private cars; noncompliant taxis and vans £9 a day, buses, coaches and HGVs £100 a day.
Birmingham
Two-mile CAZ within the Middleway ring road since June 2021. £8 a day for older cars, taxis or vans, £50 for buses and HGVs.
Bradford
Two-mile wide CAZ within inner ring road extending to Shipley, since September 2022. No charge for cars; noncompliant taxis £7, vans £9, £50 for buses, coaches and HGVs.
Bristol
City centre CAZ launched in November 22. £9 a day for older cars, taxis or vans, £100 for buses, coaches and HGVs.
Portsmouth
City centre CAZ stretching to the ferry terminal since November 2021. No charge for cars; noncompliant taxis £10 a day, buses, coaches and HGVs £50 a day.
Sheffield
CAZ launched on 27 February 2023. No charge for cars; noncompliant taxis or vans £10 a day, buses and HGVs £50 a day.
Tyneside
Newcastle upon Tyne and Gateshead centres covered by CAZ since 30 January 2023. No charge for cars; noncompliant taxis £12.50 a day (or £50 a week), buses, coaches and HGVs £50 a day.
The situation elsewhere in the UK
In Scotland, four cities have low emission zones and will eventually start charging all noncompliant vehicle types, including private cars. Glasgow, which already charges noncompliant buses, will start enforcement across all vehicles in June 2023. Edinburgh, Dundee and Aberdeen will enforce the charges from mid-2024.
No cities in Wales or Northern Ireland yet have clean air zones.
Gwyn Topham
Despite a £20m support package to help vehicle owners upgrade and a number of temporary exemptions, the move has met with some local opposition.
Councillor Mazher Iqbal, co-chair of the transport regeneration climate policy committee, said he recognised the financial impact on businesses needing to buy cleaner vehicles or pay charges: “We’ve been battling with the government to increase that financial support. We have 17,500 vehicles that need to make that transition. The government only gave us the finance for 2,500.”
But, he added: “It’s going to take those dirty polluting vehicles off our roads. And the more we do that, the better, the cleaner the air.”
Greg Fell, the director of Public Health in Sheffield, said: “Somewhere between 250 and 500 people in Sheffield are killed every year because of air pollution. Respiratory doctors and lung cancer doctors have been seeing children admitted because of asthma, almost certainly because of air pollution.
“The clean air zone will certainly accelerate the long term downwards trend in the air pollution in city. But the reality is, we’re breathing air today that is above the legal limit and is killing people.”
Fell said most people would not notice the impact of the scheme, but said he accepted that there was “a lobby of people who don’t want this to happen. All I can say is, as director of public health, it’s definitely the right thing to do.”
Taxi drivers in the rank outside Sheffield station this week remained sceptical. Mohammad, who has been cabbing in the city for 31 years, said: “They’re going to charge us £10 a day, but where’s all the smog going? Are they going to clean it?” he said. “I work five days a week and it costs me £50 for nothing.”
Another driver, Riyadh, said the cost of living has already seen him work many more hours in the day to keep up. He added: “If you want it for the environment you have to ban everybody. They want us to buy new cars but there’s no funds and they know our budgets can’t cover that.”
In line with the other clean air zones, all diesel vehicles below Euro 6 emissions standards, or commercial cars and vans below Euro 4 petrol standards, will be liable for the charge.
Non-compliant private cars are charged in Bristol and Birmingham’s clean air zones, as well as London’s ultra low emission zone, which is due to be expanded in August to the whole of Greater London.
