Emissions-based parking charge set for approval

Drivers of more polluting cars will pay more to park in Reading under the proposal

Drivers of vehicles with higher emissions will have to pay more for parking permits and at on-street parking meters in Reading under plans expected to be approved later.

Reading Borough Council has said poor air quality is considered the largest environmental risk to public health in the UK and believes its scheme will help reduce this risk for people in the town.

The authority estimates about half of drivers will pay more under the plan.

The charges will not apply to people using the council's car parks.

Under the proposal, smaller cars, such as a Ford Focus, would be charged about £1.20 an hour for on-street parking, while a BMW X7 car with a diesel engine would be charged about £3.40 an hour.

The exact figures will vary as busier town centre roads typically cost more to park on than streets further away from the centre.

Councillor John Ennis, transport lead, said 30% of people living in Reading would not be affected as they do not have a car.

"It's a radical move from a radical council who are serious about protecting the environment and getting to net zero by 2030, while cleaning our air," he said.

The scheme has been long in the making and is similar to others already in place in Bristol and some areas of London.

Reading council said research from some of these areas and "numerous studies" suggested that, as the cost of parking more polluting cars has risen, so the use of those vehicles has tended to decrease.

It said while a recent survey of drivers revealed a main concern was that older vehicles were likely to be more polluting, that was not always the case.

The council pointed to the fact that EU emissions standards have been in force for several years and many cars built more than a decade ago still meet current standards.

It said while there was "currently no direct, borough-specific evidence demonstrating that these proposals will immediately improve air quality", it was "important to recognise that emissions-based charging is a well-established demand management tool".