1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176 
Emissions report suggests truck ban
Page 8
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
• by Guy Sheppard A long-awaited report on how to improve London's air quality suggests banning nearly a third of all trucks from Greater London.
The Low Emission Zone (LEZ) Feasibility Study says Euro-3 engines or Euro-2 engines with a reduced pollution certificate (RPC) should be a standard requirement for entry into the capital from 2007. Euro3 engines with an RPC should be required from 2010, it says.
The estimated cost of compliance to operators could be up to £116m in 2007, and up to £313m in 2010. Benefits would include an estimated 20% reduction in fine particle pollution by 2010, and £100m worth of savings from fewer pollution-related illnesses and lower Health Service costs.
The report says more than a third of the entire British truck fleet probably comes into London each year and around 30% of the fleet would fail to meet the 2007 standard. "The total costs of many LEZ options to vehicle operators could be extremely high," it warns.
The study has taken two years to complete and is now being studied by London local authorities and London Mayor Ken Livingstone, who commissioned it along with the government.
The study concludes that only buses, coaches and trucks should be targeted initially, with vans possibly being included from 2010, depending on further research.
Geoff Day, Freight Transport Association engineering policy manager, says it is beyond belief that cars have been excluded because they account for the majority of traffic.
He argues that replacement of existing trucks by ones with more advanced engines means that emission levels in London will meet government targets by 2012 anyway.
"An LEZ could be justified if it achieved a major, long-term cut in pollution but, from the figures shown, it is only going to have a temporary effect."
However Hugh Thompson, managing director John Seymour Transport in Maidstone, Kent, is unconcerned about the implications, even though his 60 trucks regularly travel in and out of London.
"By the time it is brought in, I suggest that most people will be up to speed with that sort of equipment anyway.
"I don't think it will be much of a problem,"