Local authorities surrounding London have been advised to install signs warning drivers of today’s expansion of the capital’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ).
Today sees the expansion of London's ULEZ to cover all of the capital’s boroughs in what Mayor Sadiq Khan describes as a ‘landmark moment’.
The controversial extension of the ULEZ is set to bring cleaner air to five million more people and is also expected to reduce carbon emissions in outer London by a further 27,000 tonnes, according to the Mayor.
However, Kent, Surrey, Essex, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Thurrock have all refused to allow warning signs to be erected within their areas to notify drivers that they are approaching the charging zone.
Surrey and Kent county councils have said they will not allow ULEZ cameras and signage while there is no mitigation to ‘minimise the impact of the expansion’ on their residents.
A spokesperson for Hertfordshire CC said: ‘The expansion of the ULEZ zone by the Mayor of London to Hertfordshire’s borders will price some of the lowest paid in our county off the roads.
‘No amount of signage will change the fact that our residents and businesses face a £12.50 penalty for travelling into the capital.’
However, RAC head of policy Simon Williams has warned that the lack of signage could lead to drivers being unnecessarily penalised.
‘While it might appear valiant for several councils around London to stand up to the mayor in this way, it’s likely to mean drivers don’t get any advanced warning of where the new ULEZ boundary begins,’ he said.
‘They will then end up having to pay the charge rather than having a chance to avoid the area in the first place. As the High Court has ruled that the ULEZ expansion can go ahead, it’s probably time for councils and the mayor to work together rather than against one another.’
If this article was of interest, then check out, 'Home County drivers face taxation without representation.' and 'Now I am become Uxbridge, destroyer of rational climate discourse'.
