New Clean Air Zones in 2022
Clean Air Zones already exist in London, better known as the ‘Low Congestion Zone’ zone. If you pass through this zone, you must pay the congestion charge. These areas have now also appeared in Bath, Birmingham and Portsmouth and are set to pop up in more cities in 2022.
What is a Clean Air Zone?
Clean air zones are areas of a city where vehicles need to pay a fee to pass through because they produce a certain amount of emissions. This is to tackle heavy traffic, improve air quality and encourage people to use more environmentally friendly transport like bicycles.
Some of these zones target buses or taxes but others also charge private vehicles if they emit over a certain amount of emissions.
When is this happening?
It’s been announced that on the 30th May 2022, Manchester’s Clean Air Zone will cover:
- HGVs
- Buses
- Coaches
- Vans
- Minibuses
- Hackney cabs and private hire vehicles
- Motorhomes and camper vans
The fee for these vehicles could be up to £60 per day however, the cost of motorhomes and camper vans will be assessed individually depending on their emissions.
The good news is, if you are a private car, moped or motorbike driver, you shouldn’t be affected.
Where else will there be Clean Air Zones?
The cities of Bradford and Oxford started work on Clean Air Zones but this was stopped due to the pandemic, however, this work is now back underway.
How do I pay the congestion charge?
The charges can be paid by phone or online and you’ll need to pre-pay them. On the government website, you can find out:
- Where you’ll find clean air zones
- How to check if you’ll need to pay a charge and create a business account,
- and what monetary support or exemptions are available.
There’s a different service if you want to drive in London’s low emission zones. You can check your vehicle on the Transport for London (TfL) website here.
If you own a HGV, coach or taxi business and need to find cheap, easy insurance, check out our GoSkippy for Business Insurance.
