Ealing drivers forced to pay £12.50 charge as new boundary revealed

By Megan Stanley

Ealing motorists will be forced to pay £12.50 to drive their cars around next year after London Mayor Sadiq Khan confirmed the expansion of the Ultra Low Emission Zone into Greater London. From August 2023, the ULEZ boundary will move into the current Low Emission Zone, which is in place across most of the borough.

Right now, just a small chunk of the borough is in the ULEZ zone which means those who live in Acton have to pay the £12.50 if their vehicle does not match specific requirements. But, following public consultation, the mayor has decided to expand the daily charge for the most polluting vehicles to nearly all of the capital's roads

This means that residents across the whole borough including Southall, Greenford and Ealing West, will have to pay the £12.50 charge if their vehicle is not green enough. Ealing Council has been approached for comment.

An Ealing Council spokesperson said: "This will not affect most vehicles, local drivers are strongly advised to check whether it does apply to theirs. Tragically, 165 people in Ealing died prematurely last year due to air pollution, and reducing the number of higher polluting vehicles on local roads is vital as we look to improve the air our residents breathe and fight the climate crisis.

"We are making it simpler, easier and safer for local people to choose active travel and public transport over shorter journeys by car with a £10 million programme of investment to support walking, cycling and scooting.

"We are also rapidly expanding the number of electric vehicle charge points on local streets with another 130 added since last May – pushing the total to more than 300 across the borough.

"The council has also worked in partnership with Network Rail and Transport for London to secure vital improvements to five local train stations which are used by millions of local people every year."

The ULEZ expansion comes as Ealing Council are considering new measures to encourage people to leave their cars at home, and instead make local journeys using sustainable transport methods including walking, cycling or taking the bus.

Proposals, which will be up for public consultation next week, include ideas to pedestrianise Bond Street, High Street and Springbridge Road. These three roads are key routes just off New Broadway in the town centre.

The council also hopes to make the streets safer for cyclists with proposals in place to remove on-street parking and introduce traffic calming measures on a number of roads including Gordon Road, Madeley Road, Castlebar Road and Kent Gardens. Other measures on the cards include creating cycling lanes and removing on-street parking on Uxbridge Road.

New proposals have been made to improve safety around schools which may see a widening of pavements, new cycle lanes and zebra crossing. There may also be a ban on private vehicles dropping kids off directly outside schools.

ULEZ has so far helped reduce roadside pollution levels by 44 per cent in central London and 20 per cent in Inner London, according to City Hall. The Mayor has said: "The latest evidence shows that air pollution is making us sick from cradle to the grave. Londoners are developing life-changing illnesses, such as cancer, lung disease, dementia and asthma. And it's especially dangerous for children due to the long-lasting impact on their health and life chances, with kids in our city growing up with stunted lungs.

"The ULEZ so far has been transformational, reducing harmful pollution levels by almost a half in central London. But there is still far too much toxic air pollution permanently damaging the health of young Londoners and leading to thousands of early deaths every year, with the greatest number of deaths in the outer London boroughs. Expanding the ULEZ London-wide will mean five million more people will be able to breathe cleaner air and live healthier lives."

A number of new measures have been announced alongside the expansion to help alleviate concerns and help with the cost of living. These include:

• A £110million scrappage scheme that will allow outer Londoners to scrap non-compliant vehicles. In return they will get a small grant plus up to two free annual bus and tram passes or a grant to retrofit their vehicles.
• Disabled people will get a longer grace period of up to October 2027 to make any changes to vehicles, and non-profit organisations will get up to October 2025
• The £10 Auto-Pay registration charge will be removed from January 2023 so motorists can sign up for the charging system for free