Drivers in Greater Manchester will not have to pay for the highly controversial Clean Air Zone, according to Mayor Andy Burnham.
Greater Manchester authority will be obliged to reduce nitrogen dioxide rates to acceptable levels before 2026, with a Clean Air Zone helping to reduce pollution rates.
It says it can do this a year early by investing £51.2million in zero emission electric buses for the recently launched Bee Network.
A further £30.5million will be delivered in grants for cleaner taxis to operate, in addition to £5million to manage traffic flows across the city.
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Greater Manchester said its modelling showed that a Clean Air Zone in the city which charged drivers would not meet the 2026 target.
Andy Burnham said: “Cleaning up the air that people breathe is a priority for Greater Manchester and we have already started to do that through investment in the Bee Network, which saw the first buses brought back under local control in September.
“By accelerating investment in the Bee Network to create a London-style integrated public transport network, and upgrading GM-licenced taxis, we can improve air quality faster than if we introduced a Clean Air Zone, and without causing hardship to our residents or businesses.”
Greater Manchester’s Clean Air Zone would have been one of, if not, the biggest emissions-based charging zones in the world.
It would cover an area of 495 square miles and include 10 boroughs - Bolton, Bury, Manchester, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford and Wigan.
Andy Burnham continued, saying: “I’d also ask Government to urgently consider allowing Greater Manchester local authorities to remove charging Clean Air Zone signs, as modelling shows that only Greater Manchester’s investment-led plan can meet the legal test placed on the 10 councils to deliver compliance in the shortest possible time and by 2026 at the latest.”
The Government will ultimately decide whether Greater Manchester will proceed with an investment-led plan or a charging Clean Air Zone.
Greater Manchester is preparing to bring bus services in Oldham and Rochdale under local control from March 2024.
The Government called on Greater Manchester to test a charging Clean Air Zone and the impact it would have on air quality in the centre of the city and in Salford.
Speaking to GB News Political Editor Christopher Hope earlier this year, Andy Burnham called on the Prime Minister to back the Bee Network and support the city and its residents.
Using the Clean Bus Funds, Greater Manchester has been able to “retrofit” more than half of the region’s buses with emission-reducing technology.
Under the previous rules, hackney cabs and private hire vehicles would have been charged £7.50 per day, although an exemption was in place for local vehicles until June 2023, had it gone ahead.
Minibuses, vans and light goods vehicles would have been charged £10 per day, with owners of heavy goods vehicles, buses and coaches facing a daily cost of £60.
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Andy Burnham with a Bee Network electric bus
PA
Councillor Eamonn O’Brien, leader of Bury Council and Clean Air lead for Greater Manchester, said: “We want to do the right thing in the right way, using an investment-led, non-charging plan to clean the air in a supportive and transitional way, that does not create the risk of financial hardship.
“While we can now prove our case for an investment-led plan, modelling shows that we can’t achieve compliance through a charging Clean Air Zone by 2026.”
