New Low Emission Zone
On Thursday, June 1, Glasgow will see its Low Emission Zone begin fining petrol and diesel motorists for driving in the city centre in a bid to slash emissions.
From the beginning of June, all vehicles driving in the LEZ must meet certain emissions standards or face a penalty charge.
Generally, petrol vehicles registered from 2006 onwards and diesel vehicles registered after September 2015 will escape the charges and will meet the required standards, for Glasgow’s zone, and the zones in Aberdeen, Dundee and Edinburgh.
Non-compliant vehicles will initially be hit with a £60 charge, with these doubling for each subsequent breach up to a cap of £480 for cars and LGVs and £960 for buses and HGVs.
Councillor Angus Millar, city convener for climate and transport, said it was an “important milestone” for the city in its mission to reduce air pollution rates.
READ MORE: Petrol and diesel cars set to be banned from major UK city this week
He added: “Poor air quality is harming Glaswegians’ health and contributing to the city’s health inequalities, disproportionately affecting the most vulnerable.
“While the vast majority – up to 90 percent – of vehicles currently entering the city centre will be unaffected, the LEZ standards will address the most polluting vehicles which are disproportionately creating the harmful concentrations of air pollution.
“I would urge everyone, particularly those who drive into the city centre, to visit our LEZ webpages for more information and to see if their vehicle will comply with the less-polluting emissions standards.”
Clubcard fuel changes
From June 14, the wildly popular Tesco Clubcard will be changing its criteria to save on fuel prices, with motorists set to earn one point for every two litres of fuel they purchase.
Currently, when filling up at a Tesco fuel station, drivers will receive one point on their Clubcard for every £2 they spend on petrol and diesel.
For drivers to retain the same savings with the Clubcard, fuel prices would need to drop to £1 per litre. The latest update sees petrol selling for a supermarket average of 140.75p and diesel at 143.58p.
MOT consultation
The Department for Transport launched a public consultation on January 18, and sought opinions on a number of matters including whether the date of the first MOT should be moved from three years to four years.
Proposals were put forward in a bid to help motorists save money, with one year delay for new cars potentially bringing around £100million worth of savings.
The consultation ended on March 22, with the Department for Transport expected to respond within three months of the consultation closing, which should be in late June.
Fuel rates
From June 1, HM Revenue and Customs will cut diesel rates for company car users, which marks the second change to the advisory fuel rates (AFRs).
Following the start of June, the AFR for diesel vehicles will be 12p (for engines with 1,600cc or less), 14p (1,601cc to 2,000cc) and 18p (over 2,000cc).
The AFRs are the recommended reimbursement amounts for any drivers who are reclaiming business mileage, mostly when using company cars.
