Phase 3 of London’s Low Emission Zone on hold

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has suspended the introduction of the third phase of the Low Emission Zone, because of the detrimental impact it would have on small businesses.

The Low Emission Zone currently targets the most polluting lorries over 3.5 tonnes, buses and coaches.  Phase three of the scheme was scheduled to start in October 2010 and would have affected much smaller vehicles, including vans and minibuses.

Without these changes, many of the owners of the 90,000 non-compliant vehicles that use the zone every year would have faced a bill of up to £2,000 for abatement equipment or £15,000 for a new vehicle.  Alternatively, they would have faced £100 daily charges or fines of £500 for each day they entered Greater London.  These costs, says the Mayor, could have tipped firms into receivership and caused job losses