GREEN MEANS GO... LEEDS CITY COUNCIL:
U-TURN OVER CHARGING CLEAN AIR ZONE PLAN
On 19 August Coun- cillor James Lewis, Deputy Leader and Executive Member with responsibility for air quality at Leeds city Council, announced an up- date regarding a review of the coun- cil’s plans to intro- duce a Clean Air Zone in Leeds. Cllr Lewis said: “As a result of the coron- avirus pandemic we have seen pollution levels fall signifi- cantly due to the quieter roads. Leeds residents are now breathing air that is considerably cleaner and safer than just a
few months ago. “Coronavirus has led to big changes but, thanks to the city’s collective action, local air quality has actually been im- proving for some time. “Many of our buses, taxis and PHVs, and businesses are now driving cleaner vehi- cles and we’ve accelerated high- ways schemes that will reduce traffic and create more space for cyclists and pedestrians. We’re investing in public transport infrastructure as part of our £270 mil-
lion Connecting Leeds transport pro- gramme and have introduced policies and schemes to sup- port the uptake of electric and low emission vehicles.
TEN RAPID EV TAXI CHARGING POINTS TO BE INSTALLED ACROSS THE NORTH EAST
Funding from the Government’s Ultra Low Emissions Taxi In- frastructure Scheme will enable the in- stallation of ten new rapid EV taxi charg- ing points across North East England. Swarco has been awarded the con- tract to install the ten new eVolt 50kW rapid charging sta- tions which will be for the use of taxis and private hire vehicles and sup- plied with 100% renewable energy. Swarco has been working with Trans- port North East to identify the best locations for the
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rapid chargers, opt- ing for land owned by local authorities, either within car parks or on streets. Justin Meyer, Gener- al Manager of SWARCO eVolt, said: “We are using our expertise to help give drivers the con- fidence to switch to electric vehicles. We want them to know that the infrastruc- ture is being installed to make the switch viable today, rather than being something to delay until regula- tions force them to change their vehicle sometime in the future.”
Cllr Martin Gannon, Leader of Gates- head Council and chair of the North East Joint Transport Committee, said: “We are looking for- ward to this investment being made to ensure that taxi and private hire drivers will always have access to reli- able charging when they need it. “We have examples of taxi and private hire fleets transition- ing exclusively to electric vehicles and as the rapid charg- ers are added to the local infrastructure, we hope more will follow.”
“Leeds City Council is now working closely with central government to re- view the long term impact that the pan- demic and these other factors will have on the city’s air quality to under- stand whether pol- lution will ever reach illegal levels. “If the city’s air pol- lution is expected to stay below legal lim- its then we will no longer have the sup- port of the gov- ernment to intro- duce a charging CAZ. Given this un- certainty, our finan- cial support will continue to be paused until the review is complete and we have re- ceived further direc- tion. “I recognise that at an already uncertain time, this latest update will be frus- trating for many businesses. Howev- er, I would like to ask drivers and opera- tors for their con- tinued patience whilst we carry out this urgent review. I hope to be able to
clarify the future of the Leeds CAZ in the Autumn. “Tackling the cli- mate emergency and protecting the health of everyone in Leeds remain pri- orities for this council. Regardless of any future deci- sion on the charging zone we will contin- ue to deliver schemes that enable sustainable travel and the shift to zero emission vehicles.” Meanwhile, taxi and PHV drivers and politicians have hit back at the council’s announcement to put the CAZ plans on hold. The head of a Leeds taxi drivers’ association has claimed that many drivers have spent tens of thousands of pounds upgrading to eco-friendly vehi- cles “only to be told it no longer matters”. Cabbies are angered by the fact they have spent large amounts of their own cash upgrading their cars to get ready for a scheme that might not take place now.
Ghulam Nabi, the secretary of Euro- cabs Hackney Car- riage Association, said: “I was sending the council requests two months ago asking them to post- pone it. One way or another they have made a change. Our stance was always to let drivers change vehicles naturally – vehicles are only licensed for eight to 12 years. But Leeds City Council wanted to force it through. “I know two drivers who have spent more than £70,000 on electric vehicles because they want- ed to be compliant with the zone. It’s bad for a lot of drivers – it would have been better if the council had lis- tened to what we were saying.” Leeds City Council had given some financial support to taxi and private hire drivers, allowing them to apply for a grant of up to £1,500 to go towards buy- ing a hybrid car and up to £3,000 to pur- chase a full electric vehicle. Hundreds of drivers are now understood to have taken up the scheme. A Leeds MP claimed the city still needed a clean air zone, say- ing it would be complacent for the government to as- sume recent im- provements in air quality would con- tinue after the Covid-19 pandemic.
SEPTEMBER 2020
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