Some taxis could get extra time to comply with Glasgow Low Emission Zone

Drivers and owners have been telling the council that is unaffordable for many to meet the conditions due to start on June 1 next year.

Now it is being proposed that enforcement for taxi operators who don’t have access to funded retrofit solutions to meet the LEZ minimum emission standards will be granted an additional extension.

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Councillors are due to decide to grant a time-limited extension to give another year until June 2024.

The plan is that taxis that can be retrofitted, with the help of a Transport Scotland Grant, will need to comply by June 2023.

All other vehicles driving into the city centre must be compliant with the rules by June next year.

The council said operators who apply for retrofit funding by the end of October however will not be penalised if they cannot meet the emission standards in time should issues arise regarding funding availability and/or retrofitting capacity.

This discretionary mechanism which guarantees a short-term LEZ exemption, is designed to provide support and reassurance to taxi operators who are actively seeking to achieve emissions compliance through retrofit. In a similar vein, ongoing correspondence between the council and the Scottish Government regarding funding support for taxis has resulted in recent improvements to the LEZ Support Fund that will significantly reduce operators’ contribution to the cost of retrofit.

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Angus Millar, Transport and Climate Convener, said: “Granting a temporary exemption to taxi operators who cannot access a funded retrofit solution to achieve emissions compliance would be a practical and proportionate way to support the sector ahead of next year’s general enforcement of Glasgow’s LEZ.

“This considered approach seeks to balance our absolute determination to tackle longstanding, illegal levels of air pollution in our city centre as quickly as we can, with our desire to mitigate as far as possible the cost to operators to achieve compliance.

“I also very much welcome the additional funding that has been made available through the retrofit element of the LEZ Support Fund. This will allow for those operators with vehicles that can be retrofitted to the required emission standards, to do so at a reduced cost.

“As we head toward LEZ enforcement, we will continue to support the taxi sector in achieving compliance, whether that is by encouraging the early uptake of this improved funding support for retrofits, or by granting operators additional time to prepare where they do not have that option open to them.”

The council said the LEZ will restrict access to the city centre zone “for the most polluting vehicles”.

For people who live within the LEZ  there is also an additional year to comply.