Last week, Defra (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) said that Birmingham, Leeds, Southampton, Nottingham and Derby will be required to introduce the zones by 2020.
Cars will be exempt in all five – a missed opportunity, says FTA, to improve air quality and reduce carbon emissions.
In Birmingham and Leeds, the zone will cover HGVs, light goods vehicles, buses, coaches and taxis, while in Southampton, Nottingham and Derby only HGVs, buses, coaches and taxis will be included.
HGVs will need to be Euro 6 or above to access the clean air zones or face a charge. All ultra-low emission vehicles will be given free access.
“Rather than sharing the burden of meeting air quality targets, the government has firmly rested the responsibility on other modes, including freight, which access cities to deliver the goods and services to keep our economy moving,” comments Rachael Dillon, FTA’s climate change policy manager.
She adds: “To fail to include cars ... is baffling.”
Instead, urges Dillon, all road transport should be covered to help meet the EU air quality targets. The London ULEZ (ultra-low emission zone) from 2020 will include cars.
FTA is also concerned that small fleet operators may struggle to acquire new vehicles ahead of schedule.
For diesel vans, the Euro 6 requirement does not come into force until September 2016.
Therefore, says FTA, a large number of operators will still have pre-Euro 6 vans in 2020 – especially those who use second-hand vehicles.