LONDON 'ELECTRIC AVENUES'

Petrol and diesel cars will be fined on city centre streets for the first time as part of the toughest restrictions yet on polluting vehicles.

Within the next two weeks, motorists will have to pay £130 for driving any car other than electric and hybrid models on nine streets in London during peak times. The measures are being introduced by Hackney and Islington councils on September 3, just as the school year starts.

The City of London Corporation is considering imposing similar measures in the Square Mile, the main financial district. Access to one street will be limited to ultra-low emission vehicles from April next year as part of a trial scheme which could then be expanded, it was announced.

The measures are a step up from the tough approach of Sadiq Khan, mayor of London, who introduced a £10-a-day “toxicity charge” for owners of older petrol and diesel vehicles driving into the centre of the capital earlier this year.

Last night, motoring groups welcomed policies to improve air quality but warned that “ad hoc” measures could confuse drivers and lead to more and more fines.

There are serious concerns about the damage caused by polluting vehicles to air quality in built-up areas. An estimated 40,000 premature deaths a year in the UK are caused by air pollution, including emissions from diesel and petrol vehicles.

Councils in several areas have introduced fines for leaving engines running unnecessarily by the roadside and others charge motorists to drive to work. Some London councils charge diesel car owners more for residential parking permits and others have imposed higher diesel fees for on-street parking bays.

The nine roads in London that are becoming ultra-low emission zones are all close to the busy Old Street roundabout. Any car that emits more than 75g of CO2 per kilometre — all petrol and diesel models — will be banned between 7am and 10am and then between 4pm and 7pm during week days.

Streets will be policed by automatic number plate recognition cameras and owners of non-compliant cars spotted driving in the area during peak times will be handed a £130 penalty notice, which will be reduced if paid early.

Feryal Demirci, Hackney council’s cabinet member for transport, said that the policy would “reclaim the streets from polluting petrol and diesel vehicles, and improve the area for thousands of people every day”.

The City of London will test similar measures at the southern end of Moor Lane in the Square Mile from April. A spokesman said there would be a feasibility study and public consultation before the test. “We will carefully consider the results of the pilot scheme and use the outcomes to inform any future proposals for other areas of the Square Mile,” he said.

Edmund King, president of the AA, said the number of different pollution measures being introduced across the country risked causing mass confusion for drivers, meaning that many would get fined.

“There needs to be leadership on this issue,” he said. “This is going to be incredibly confusing for drivers who will be charged different amounts for driving in different parts of the country. We must have a more concerted policy rather than the ad hoc measures we’re currently seeing.”

Source: The Times.