How Will The London ULEZ Expansion Affect Classic Car Owners?

With London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) expanding even further this summer is it a welcome addition to help improve air quality in the Big Smoke or just another cash generating witch hunt aimed at those of us who enjoy our older, internal combustion-engined classics?

What is it?

The UK Government’s plan to help clear up London’s air by ridding the city of polluting vehicles was introduced by the then mayor of the city and now disgraced former PM Boris Johnson back in 2015, but didn’t actually come into effect until 2019. Initially covering the Central London area alongside the already implemented congestion charge, the ULEZ would be expanded two years later to include all areas within the North and South Circular Roads. Having raised over £200million last year alone it’s quite the earner and this year, on the 29th of August to be exact, the area covered will increase yet again to include all of Greater London and its borders with Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent and Surrey. But what effect will this have on us as humble classic car owners?

The central congestion charge zone, the current ULEZ and the August expansion

Logistically speaking, if you want to drive within the ULEZ zone and your vehicle is not ULEZ compliant then you will have to pay £12.50 per day for the privilege, i.e. every time you use your car. If you drove into London on Monday, say, parked up and then drove out again on the following Friday you would be required to pay £25. Failing to pay the ULEZ charge will incur a £180 fine, reduced to £90 if paid within 14 days. Like we said, quite the money maker. Nicholas Lyes, RAC head of roads policy, said: “the sheer number of vehicles that don’t meet ULEZ emissions standards in Greater London suggests there will be a massive financial impact on motorists and businesses”. Indeed.

But how do I know if my vehicle is compliant?

Well, there is a handy tool on the Transport for London website that lets you input your registration and it will tell you if your vehicle is compliant. There is some good news for those of us that drive vehicles older than 40 years, however. As stated on the TfL website: “All vehicles that have a historic vehicle tax class are exempt from the ULEZ. This tax class excludes any vehicle used commercially (for example, coffee vans or street food vans). In line with the existing LEZ discount all vehicles constructed before 1 January 1983 are exempt from the ULEZ, regardless of commercial use or otherwise. This date moves forward on a 40-year rolling system.”

Sadly, cars like this BMW E30 are not ULEZ compliant

Any of the following are also exempt: diesel cars that meet Euro 6 emissions standards, petrol cars that meet Euro 4 emissions standards, Euro 3 for motorcycles and fully-electric cars, as well as various niche vehicles. However, this does mean that all of those modern classics built after the date mentioned above will fall under the ULEZ payment umbrella, and that’s a hell of a lot of people, including many of us here at Car & Classic.

What does all of this mean for me?

Already older car owners have been forced to scrap, sell or just plain abandon their cars because of the ULEZ. Walk into any underground car park in London and we can pretty much guarantee you’ll find at least one modern classic that has sadly been forsaken. That’s not to mention the knock-on consequences affecting industry-connected businesses that count on older cars, such as smaller, independent garages.

This Lotus Elise is just one example of cars that have been abandoned, most likely due to ULEZ

There has been a lot of backlash surrounding the expansion, and not just from classic car owners and those of limited means who are generally more likely to own older cars. With many small businesses being affected, they are set to bear the brunt of the government’s decision to widen the zone. Rowena Howie, Policy Chair for the Federation of Small Businesses London quite rightly says: “The expansion of ULEZ will negatively impact thousands of small businesses through a myriad of issues including but not limited to customers choosing not to travel, businesses not being able to provide services in London and employees experiencing increased costs.”

She goes on to say: “To put these additional pressures on small businesses at a time when business has been adversely impacted by COVID-19 restrictions, where uncertainty and planning and reliance on supply chains has been further interrupted by new international trade agreements and where the energy crisis has further pushed up the cost of doing business, will be too much for some businesses to bear.”

When all is said and done, as classic car owners who generally use their vehicles in a limited capacity, it’s still more economically and environmentally viable to keep an old car running than it is to buy a brand new one. Yes, despite having a much larger impact on the environment to produce, over their lifetime EVs are responsible for far less CO2 than ICE cars but generally speaking, we as classic car owners don’t use them every day and so concessions should be made. As the Historic and Classic Vehicle Alliance (HCVA) suggested last year, classic car owners would not hugely contribute to negative air quality if they used their classic cars at certain times of the day. London ULEZ charges should be looked at on a time-constraint basis to ensure some leeway was given to motorists.

So what are my options?

There’s the severely prejudiced government scrappage scheme whereby incentives are offered for low income families and businesses to scrap older vehicles and replace them with new low-emission cars – a scheme that has already claimed the lives of so many classic cars in the name of the polar bears. Failing that you can get a pushbike and take your life into your own hands every time you want to travel into London, or get the bus where there is a very real threat of being violated, both physically and emotionally. There are trains of course, if they’re actually running that is. With fewer public transport alternatives in outer London finding a reliable service may prove difficult, however.

The Triumph Herald, which ceased production in ’71, would be ULEZ compliant

Our preference, if we had to regularly drive into the ULEZ, would be to sell on or mothball our current classic (if non-compliant) and buy something that’s at least 40 years old. That way we still get to drive in London for free whilst continuing to indulge our passion for older vehicles. It remains to be seen how the ULEZ expansion will play out but suffice to say it seems to be just another slap in the face for the humble classic car enthusiast. Perhaps renewable fuels will play a part in the future, helping classic cars to be more viable in the UK’s capital. We can but hope, but in the meantime we will continue to indulge that passion and enjoy our classics, perhaps just not in London, or Bristol…