The London Fire Brigade is facing an £11 million bill as many of its vehicles are not compliant with Ulez restrictions.
A Freedom of Information Request revealed that 14 per cent of all vehicles currently in use by the LFB are not Ulez compliant, with all of them being vital frontline and blue light resources, such as ladder or pump trucks.
Whilst there is an existing deal in place between Transport for London (TfL), the Mayor’s Office and the LFB to make fire engines exempt from Ulez, this is only a temporary reprieve.
The fire service has stated that "to comply with Ulez vehicle emission requirements including the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Transport for London (TfL), the London Fire Brigade (LFB) fleet replacement programme includes a project to replace all 188 pumping appliances" as well as other vehicles.
The London Fire Brigade is facing an £11 million bill as a result of many of its vehicles not being compliant with Ulez restrictions
PA
Additionally, the LFB operates a fleet of specialist heavy vehicles, including Fire Rescue Units that contain additional equipment or Command Support Units used for scene management.
According to the LFB, these vehicles "account for an average of 2,400 blue light journeys per year and are used much more widely on a day-to-day basis".
Many of these vehicles also fall foul of the expanded Ulez zone.
Fleet replacement documents published by the LFB outline that the costs for a standard pumping appliance are at least £247,218.
In 2023, the service had 318 vehicles, meaning 45 - which amounts to 14 per cent of the vehicles - are Ulez non-compliant.
The cost of replacing the non-compliant vehicles could therefore be over £11 million of taxpayer cash.
Susan Hall, Conservative candidate for the London Mayoralty, described the situation as "outrageous".
She told GB News: "Sadiq Khan's Ulez expansion is nothing but a cash grab hitting families, businesses, charities and now our emergency services.
"It is outrageous that the London Fire Brigade are being forced to pay out millions on new vehicles, when they should be focused on keeping people safe.
Susan Hall, Conservative candidate for the London Mayoralty, described the situation as "outrageous"
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"I will scrap the ULEZ expansion on day one of my Mayoralty, no ifs, no buts."
Pointing to the Memorandum of Understanding, a spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: “All London Fire Brigade (LFB) and other non-compliant emergency service vehicles are exempt from the ULEZ charge. There will be no additional cost to the taxpayer for the replacement of these vehicles. All vehicle replacements are part of the planned schedule to upgrade vehicles.”
A London Fire Brigade spokesperson said: “All London Fire Brigade vehicles are exempt from the ULEZ charge. The Brigade is committed to significantly reducing carbon emissions, supporting the Mayor of London’s ambition for London to be net zero carbon by 2030 and to build a greener and safer city for everyone. This includes replacing our fleet with greener vehicles when they are due to be upgraded and investing in the development of the UK’s first ever electric-hybrid fire engine."
