Why the London ULEZ extension is a major boost to health

The Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) is a scheme that aims to reduce air pollution in London by charging drivers of the most polluting vehicles a daily fee to enter the zone. The ULEZ was launched in April 2019 and covered the same area as the Congestion Charge Zone in central London. However, the ULEZ will soon be expanded to cover a much larger area of greater London. This means that millions of Londoners will benefit from cleaner air and improved health.

Air pollution is a serious public health issue that affects everyone, especially children, older people, and those with respiratory or cardiovascular conditions. According to the Mayor of London, air pollution causes around 4,000 premature deaths in London each year and costs the economy £3.7 billion annually. Air pollution can also worsen symptoms of asthma, bronchitis, COPD, and other lung diseases, as well as increase the risk of heart attacks, strokes, diabetes, and dementia.

You'd think that something with such clear and measurable benefits would not be a controversial topic, yet legal and street protests have met its expansion. Owners of older cars which do not meet the emissions requirements to avoid the surcharge have been gathering to protest its expansion. Claims range from the Mayor of London's scrappage scheme being insufficient to support owner's transition to cleaner cars, poor public transport links and the usual right-wing conspiracy theories.

Some London Boroughs (Conservative controlled) are threatening legal action to delay or strike down the ULEZ expansion completely, this despite benefits such as preventing around 300,000 cases of asthma in children by 2025, reducing hospital admissions for respiratory and cardiovascular diseases by 40%, and £5bn savings in health costs.

The ULEZ extension is part of a wider strategy to make London a greener and more sustainable city. By reducing traffic congestion and greenhouse gas emissions, the ULEZ will help London achieve its target of becoming carbon neutral by 2030. The ULEZ will also support the development of low emission neighbourhoods, electric vehicle infrastructure, cycle lanes and green spaces across London. There is no city better placed than London to achieve these goals, yet it is currently being led by many other European cities, even Paris where such a thing would have been unheard of a decade ago.

Those fighting the expansion are driven by self-interest and should be called out for doing so. Their arguments are specious and the thinking behind them limited. Cleaner air and cities which are friendlier to people not cars are outcomes which all cities should be seeking. The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, should be praised by his plans to make that happen.