The Manchester Clean Air Zone is to launch on 30 May 2022, after plans were approved by Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM).
Under the plans, drivers of highly polluting heavy goods vehicles, buses and coaches will be charged £60 a day. For non-compliant vans and taxis, the costs are £10 and £7.50 a day respectively. Private cars are exempt from the charge.
Ahead of the Clean Air Zone roll-out, TfGM says it has secured £120 million from the government to help impacted businesses buy compliant vehicles. Van owners will be able to access up to £4,500 towards a new vehicle, while hackney cab owners get up to £10,000 to upgrade. Applications open in November.
A Clean Air Greater Manchester report said that while the Covid-19 pandemic ‘led to brief air quality improvements’, modelling showed it would not reduce long-term roadside pollution without the implementation of a Clean Air Zone.
Transport for Greater Manchester says it has secured government funding to install 30 taxi-only electric vehicle charging points across the city. It will also publish an Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Strategy next month.
According to TfGM, this document ‘will set out ambitious plans, so that by 2030 anyone who chooses to travel by car or van will be able to confidently drive an EV knowing that they can recharge it quickly and conveniently across the region’. No further details have been announced at this stage, however. At present, there are around 360 public charging points located in the city.
‘Leading the green revolution’
“Greater Manchester were the pioneers of the industrial revolution, now we are leading a green revolution, backed with over £120 million that we’ve secured to hand over to businesses to support making their vehicles compliant,” said Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham.
“The fact is that air pollution is not a problem that is going to go away on its own. Not only has our plan been directed by the national government, we’ve taken this seriously and fought to get a plan which has the right funding support for residents and to protect those most vulnerable as well as our trade and businesses. This plan will also have major health and wellbeing benefits for people living near motorways or major roads as there will be fewer polluting vehicles and HGVs using them.”
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