Bath Clean Air Zone: Charge for polluting vehicles to launch in March

The council needs to reduce air pollution in Bath city centre

A clean air zone charge on vehicles aimed at improving air quality in Bath city centre is now set to be launched on 15 March, it has been announced.

The scheme is England's first charging clean air zone (CAZ) outside London and was due to start next month but was delayed by the coronavirus pandemic.

Private cars will be exempt but the most-polluting commercial vehicles such as buses and lorries will be charged.

High-emission commercial vans will pay a £9 fee and HGVs and buses £100.

Private hire vehicles and taxis will also have to pay a £9-a-day charge.

Bath and North East Somerset Council said it was contacting more than 9,000 local businesses to help them establish whether charges would apply to their vehicles and how they could access the support on offer.

Drivers affected by charges have been advised to check the council's website for a list of local exemptions and whether they might be eligible for financial support to upgrade their vehicle or fleet.

The Clean Air Zone was due to start in November but was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic

A financial support scheme is intended to help people regularly affected by charges to upgrade to compliant vehicles.

Council leader Dine Romero said: "We have worked hard to secure a considerable package of financial and other support to help business owners and I would urge them to get in touch, talk to us and find out how we can help.

"We all want clean air and the zone is a step towards our wider ambitions for Bath and North East Somerset to address air quality and tackle the climate emergency."

Southampton and Leeds councils have already agreed CAZs, while similar schemes are proposed for cities including Bristol, Birmingham, Sheffield and Greater Manchester.

Local authorities across the country were told to take action by the government to reduce dangerously high levels of NO2.

The authority said the launch date would be monitored to account for any significant developments regarding the Covid-19 pandemic.