Oxford's Zero Emission Zone pilot to begin in February

Non-zero emission vehicles using the zones in the city centre will be subject to charges

Oxford's Zero Emission Zone (ZEZ) pilot is due to begin next month.

Oxford City Council and Oxfordshire County Council said a pilot to charge non-zero emission vehicles, using the zones in the city centre, would begin on 28 February.

They said Oxford would be the first city in Britain to introduce a ZEZ.

Duncan Enright, the county council's cabinet member for travel and development strategy, called it a "proud moment" for the city.

The scheme, which will apply between 07:00 and 19:00 each day, was approved last March.

Under the plans motorists will be charged for driving in the red zone

The ZEZ will be widened to cover the rest of the city centre

The pilot includes Bonn Square, Queen Street, Cornmarket Street, part of Market Street, Ship Street, St Michael's Street, New Inn Hall Street and Shoe Lane, in the so-called "red zone".

A wider ZEZ covering the rest of the city centre will follow next year, subject to further public consultation.

Zero emission vehicles will not be charged to drive in the zone, but all petrol and diesel vehicles, including hybrids, will be charged from £2 to £10 per day, with automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras enforcing the new rules.

Mr Enright said the councils were "taking concrete actions to improve air quality in the city and to make it cleaner and safer".

Tom Hayes, deputy leader and cabinet member for green transport and zero carbon at Oxford City Council, said the authority had "chosen to set the toughest air quality standards of any local authority in the country".

He added: "There is no safe level of air pollution... the city council has helped to establish a data-led, science-based target of creating a net zero city by 2040."

The councils said the pilot did not have a "definitive end date" but would be "kept under review".

"In the coming months, we will use insights gained from the pilot and will consult with the public to introduce a larger ZEZ that will cover most of Oxford city centre including the pilot area," they added.