Birmingham City Council (BCC) has announced a 13-day grace period for the city’s Clean Air Zone (CAZ) from when it commenced operation on 1 June.
The grace period runs to the end of the day on 13 June and is part of what BCC describes as “a soft launch” of the CAZ. During the intervening period BCC will not require owners of non-compliant vehicles that lack an exemption and which enter the CAZ to pay the daily charge and enforcement of the Zone “will not be pursued.”
From 14 June, the daily charge will be levied on non-compliant vehicles that enter the CAZ. For coaches and buses that do not satisfy Euro VI it is £50. Failure to pay the fee will lead to the issue of a penalty charge notice for £120.
BCC says that the adoption of a short grace period for the Birmingham CAZ is to provide “a little extra time to get ready, review the support available and to consider the alternatives to driving through the CAZ.”
Exemptions to the Birmingham CAZ include those that capture vehicles operated on Section 19 and Section 22 permits; commercial vehicles that are registered to a business address within the Zone; and commercial vehicles with existing finance agreements that are operated by a company based in the CAZ, or kept or stored overnight within it. The duration of exemptions, and the number that may be applied for, varies.
The Heavy Duty Vehicle Fund offers support to eligible operators based in both the CAZ and the wider West Midlands to replace non-compliant members of their fleets or upgrade them to comply with the Zone.
