New tighter Low Emission Zone standards for HGVs introduced in London

• Mayor introduces new London-wide emissions standards for heavy vehicles
• New data from City Hall shows that nearly 90 per cent of vehicles already compliant ahead of standards being introduced, up from only 71 per cent in May 2019
• Over 90 per cent of cars in central London now meet the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) standards
• Compliance with the ULEZ and Low Emission Zone (LEZ) standards has continued to grow throughout 2020 despite the pandemic - showing that schemes such as ULEZ and LEZ are effective in achieving significant air quality improvements, with only those who are polluting having to pay.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, is today tightening the London-wide Low Emission Zone (LEZ) standards for heavy vehicles. Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs), buses and coaches must now meet Euro VI (NOx and PM) emissions standards or pay a daily charge of up to £300. These new standards apply to heavy vehicles across most of Greater London and match the emission standards of the central London Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ). 

The Low Emission Zone was set up to encourage the most polluting heavy diesel vehicles driving in the capital to become cleaner. It covers most of Greater London and operates 24 hours a day, every day of the year. The tougher LEZ is already having an impact, with new data from City Hall showing compliance with the new standards is nearly at 90 per cent, compared to around 70 per cent in May 2019.  

Earlier this year Transport for London announced that their entire 9,000-strong core bus fleet complies with the LEZ standards, and now meets or exceeds the cleanest Euro VI emissions standards.

The introduction of tougher standards for the LEZ, alongside the expansion of the Ultra Low Emission Zone later this year, is expected to reduce nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions from road transport by around 30 per cent across London in 2021 and will help deliver wider benefits for the capital, including preventing more than one million air pollution related hospital admissions over the next 30 years, saving the NHS around £5 billion.

It builds on the success of earlier standards and the central London Ultra-Low Emission Zone in improving London’s air quality. From today the new, tougher standards for construction machinery covered by the Mayor’s Non-Road Mobile Machinery Low Emission Zone will also be enforced.

Today the Mayor has published the latest in a series of reports evaluating the impact of the central London ULEZ. This report shows that, even throughout the pandemic, compliance with the ULEZ standards has remained high. Compliance with the ULEZ at the end of December 2020 was more than 90 percent for cars and 85 per cent for all vehicle types. This compares to 39 per cent compliance in February 2017 when the T-charge, the precursor to the ULEZ, was announced by the Mayor of London, and Londoners started preparing for the ULEZ. 

Compliance with the ULEZ and LEZ standards has continued to grow throughout 2020 and it is clear that both schemes have been effective in accelerating the shift to cleaner, less polluting vehicles.

The report also shows that the scale of reduction in nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) in central London in 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic was similar to the reduction driven by the Mayor’s air quality programme between 2017 and 2019. But the improvements due to ULEZ and other policies have been achieved without the profound curtailment of our lives seen during lockdown, showing that they are vital to the process of improving air quality and supporting a green recovery. 

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “Toxic air pollution causes long-lasting harm and is a national public health crisis. In London it contributes to thousands of premature deaths every year. There is also evidence linking air pollution with an increased vulnerability to the most severe impacts of COVID-19.This new data shows that the action I’m taking is already making a difference and saving lives. These figures prove without a doubt that the Low Emission Zone and Ultra Low Emission Zone are accelerating the shift to cleaner vehicles.

“I’ve moved fast in London to implement the most ambitious plans to tackle air pollution of any major city in the world - showing what we can achieve if we are brave enough. The Government must take urgent steps to help clean up filthy air across the country, including with a new Environment Bill to give cities the powers and funding they need and making World Health Organization air quality guidelines legally binding targets to be met by 2030.”

Alex Williams, TfL’s Director of City Planning, said: “Toxic air in London is a blight on the city and we need to take bold action to clean it up. The introduction of these tighter standards for heavy vehicles and the expansion of the ULEZ will significantly reduce harmful emissions within the M25. We have been working closely with the freight industry to prepare them for the launch of a stronger Low Emission Zone. They have responded magnificently, showing their commitment to a green recovery, with the vast majority now meeting these world-leading environmental requirements.”

ENDS

NOTES

  
Details of the tighter LEZ standards:

HGVs, heavy vans, buses/minibuses and coaches 

· Lorry, heavy van or specialist heavy vehicle over 3.5 tonnes gross vehicle weight 

· Bus/minibus or coach over 5 tonnes 
 

Current standard: Euro IV - particulate matter (PM) 

New standard: Euro VI - nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter (PM). This is the same as the ULEZ standard - these vehicles will no longer need to pay a separate ULEZ charge 
 

For the majority of vehicles, the strengthening of the LEZ standards means that they are no longer separately subject to LEZ and ULEZ standards. The exception is for vans between 1.2T and 3.5T and minibuses under 5T where the LEZ and ULEZ standards are different. These vehicles will need to comply with both schemes if they drive into the ULEZ area or pay both sets of charges.

You can still check if your vehicle meets the current standards. 
 

Daily charges under the tougher standards 

We would prefer that your vehicle meets the tougher LEZ emissions standards, so you don't need to pay the daily LEZ charge. 

If you drive a HGV, lorry, van or other specialist heavy vehicle over 3.5 tonnes gross vehicle weight or a bus/minibus or coach over 5 tonnes gross vehicle weight within the LEZ and it does not meet Euro VI (NOx and PM), you will need to pay the daily LEZ charge.  

If your vehicle: 

· Meets Euro IV or V (PM) - you will need to pay a daily charge of £100 

· Does not meet Euro IV (PM) - you will need to pay a daily charge of £300 

No charge if vehicle meets Euro VI standard (NOx and PM).

The date for enforcement of these tougher standards was delayed from October 2020:The Mayor decided to delay the introduction of the tougher standards for the LEZ in response to concerns about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on supply chains for newer vehicles and retrofit equipment during the tightest lockdown restrictions in early 2020. TfL reviewed this decision in early September 2020 and found that supply chains had resumed and are able to meet the expected demand.

Non-Road Mobile Machinery (NRMM)

Non-Road Mobile Machinery (NRMM) is a broad category which includes mobile machines, and transportable industrial equipment or vehicles which are fitted with an internal combustion engine and not intended for transporting goods or passengers on roads.

NRMM, particularly from the construction sector, is a significant contributor to London’s air pollution. The NRMM Low Emission Zone uses the Mayor and London Borough’s planning powers to control emissions from NRMM used on construction sites.

In a similar way to the Ultra Low Emission Zone the NRMM Low Emission Zone requires that all engines with a power rating between 37 kW and 560 kW meet an emission standard based on the engine emission “stage”.

The standards that need to be met depend on where the construction site is:

The current standards are stage IV for construction machinery operating in the Central Activities Zone and Opportunity Areas (including Canary Wharf) and stage IIIB in the rest of London.

Stages IIIB and IV have not been defined for machines with constant speed engines, such as generators. This means that these machines will need to meet stage V.

Stage IV has also not been directly defined for variable speed engines smaller than 56 kW. In most cases these engines will need to meet stage V if they are in the Central Activities Zone and Opportunity Areas (OAs).