Having considered the earliest possible opportunity to
introduce the public health initiatives – the LEZ Leadership
Group, which includes Transport Secretary , Climate
Change Secretary and
representatives from Glasgow City Council, The City of
Edinburgh Council, Dundee City Council, Aberdeen City Council,
Public Health Scotland and SEPA – have agreed an indicative
timeframe to introduce LEZs across Scotland’s four largest
cities.
Plans to implement LEZs had been paused temporarily due to the
COVID-19 outbreak but work has now restarted. This new
indicative timeframe takes account of various legislative and
regulatory steps which need to be taken by the Scottish
Government and local authorities prior to the introduction of
LEZs.
Due to the unprecedented impact of the COVID-19 outbreak, both
now and in the future, it is not a finalised timetable for
introduction. It is a commitment by all partners to work as
quickly as they can to introduce LEZs at the earliest juncture.
Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and
Connectivity said:
“The Scottish Government and members of the Low Emission Zone
Leadership Group are committed to introducing LEZs across
Scotland’s four biggest cities as quickly as possible.
“LEZs are key to improving air quality, protecting public
health and supporting Scotland’s wider climate change ambitions
by encouraging more sustainable transport options.
“With the indicative timeline now established, planning
continues at a local authority level and the Scottish
Government will continue to develop the required regulations as
well as providing funding to help people and businesses
prepare.”
Local authorities will continue to explore grace periods
following introduction and will balance the needs of businesses
and residents with the urgent requirement to tackle pockets of
poor air quality in our biggest cities. Glasgow has already
introduced the first LEZ which applies to buses only at this
time.
For the latest information visit: www.lowemissionzones.scot
BACKGROUND
The indicative timeline has considered the earliest period in
which LEZs could be realistically introduced using the powers
of the Transport (Scotland) Act. The period between February
and May accounts for potential impacts on the Parliamentary
timetable (and associated Council Committee timetabling)
arising from the COVID-19 outbreak.
Development of the regulations and guidance will confirm the
steps to be taken to introduce LEZs (such as examination
processes which could have an impact on the final timeframes
for introduction).
Whilst the introduction date for LEZ grace periods to begin has
been adjusted, LEZ enforcement across various vehicle types is
still on track to come into play in the early 2020s, depending
on the local authority’s decisions on grace periods.
The movement of formal introduction may impact local decisions
around implementation and grace periods, which may be between 1
and 4 years as decided by the local authority.
The preparation of Scotland’s Low Emission Zones is already
generating tangible air quality improvements by reducing
harmful transport emissions.
£8.85 million for the Bus Emission Abatement
Retrofit Fund (BEAR) is being made available in 2020/21,
with improved rates compared to previous funding rounds, to
support the Scottish Government’s commitment to introduce Low
Emission Zones into Scotland’s four biggest cities.
The LEZ Support Fund made available targeted grant funding of
£1.09 million for taxis, heavy goods vehicles, and
micro-businesses. Depending on uptake, funding is anticipated
to increase every year until 2021/22, with figures confirmed
through the normal spending review process.
£4.5 million was made available through the Public Transport
Provision Fund in 2019/20, to local authorities and regional
transport partnerships in order to establish LEZ related
projects in their areas. In addition, we provided half a
million pounds to local authorities to progress their LEZ
designs.
