Mayor of Manchester, Andy Burnham, has announced plans to launch a Clean Air Zone (CAZ) in the city next year.
From 30th May 2022, all lorries and busses that are not equipped with a Euro VI engine will face a charge of £60.00 a day to enter the zone. The same charge for coaches will be introduced the following year, in addition to a £10.00 daily charge for minibuses and vans. An exemption, however, will be applied to cars.
Government funds will be made available to operators of heavy goods vehicles located in the Greater Manchester area; an operation may apply for a grant of up to £16,000 to retrofit exhaust equipment on any vehicle which falls short of the requirement.
If, for a given vehicle, retrofitting is not possible, the operator may apply for a grant to finance the replacement. The sums available per asset are capped according to vehicle type. For example*:
- For 44-tonne articulated lorries, a total of £6,500 will be available;
- For 32-tonne rigid lorries, £12,000;
- For 26-tonne rigids, £9,000;
- For 18-tonne rigids, £7,000; and
- For 7.5-tonne rigids, £5,000.
*These numbers are applied per vehicle.
Commercial and private owners of applicable vehicles will be eligible to apply, as well as those listed as registered keepers. It has been proposed that operators include no more than five vehicles in their application.
Most of the roads in Greater Manchester will be incorporated into the zone; among the exceptions are those managed by Highways England, such as motorways and trunk roads.
Comprehensive information on the scheme and what it will mean to hauliers working in and around the city can be found here.