Worker-led Lambeth Council has vowed to make the borough “diesel-free” while introducing new charges to drastically reduce the number of such vehicles there.
The council previously stated its goal was to go diesel-free in the “very near future”, and has tripled parking fees for diesel surcharges as part of the drive.
Under the changes introduced last month, diesel cars will be charged £140 for a year’s permit, up from £42 the year before.
This means that the annual parking diesel surcharge would add a third to the parking costs for the year on more than half of the new parking permits charged by Lambeth.
The move was welcomed by campaigners, who hoped Lambeth’s push to phase out diesel cars could encourage other London boroughs to follow suit.
Calls for a ban on permits for new diesel cars
Mums for Lungs, a campaign group, has said municipalities should not issue parking permits for new diesel vehicles this year to speed this up.
Speaking at last year’s “End of Diesel Fumes” event, Danny Adilypour, then Lambeth cabinet member for clean air, said: “In Lambeth we are committed to being a diesel-free municipality in the very near future.
“We are looking at how we charge cars for parking permits. Emissions play a big part, and for a diesel car it costs more to park on our streets, so we really support the #CleanAirWins campaign and we are doing everything we can in Lambeth to make sure we meet the campaign’s objectives. ”
Under this plan, higher resident permit fees were introduced, in addition to higher parking charges for diesel vehicles, which can now cost up to a third more to park compared to a non-diesel vehicle.
For example, a parking space for a diesel car in Waterloo would have to pay £9.45 per hour, compared to £6.30 for a non-diesel vehicle.
The charges came in tandem with new emissions-based parking charges introduced last month, increasing some annual parking permits by more than £160.
A permit for the most polluting cars in Lambeth would now cost £500, up from £340 last year. Even zero-emission electric vehicles will have to pay £120, up from £40 last year.
Other municipalities follow
Lambeth’s move mirrors massive increases by other Labour-led councils such as Islington and Southwark, both of which indicated the move was designed to reduce car use. Boroughs such as Islington and City of Westminster have also introduced diesel surcharges.
On Thursday, Mums for Lungs is hosting a Clean Air Carnival, underlining its plan to phase out diesel cars across London.
The group, which was founded in 2017 by mothers in Lambeth, is calling for a ban on parking permits for new vehicles, while permits for existing vehicles and blue badge holders should still be allowed. It also wants a total ban on all vehicles by 2030.
According to the group’s analysis of car registration data, there are more than 12,000 diesel cars registered in Lambeth and 144,000 in central London.
‘On the threshold of something historic’
Jemima Hartshorn, the founder of Mums for Lungs, said: “We are on the verge of something historic with the end of diesel fumes. But without local leadership of councilors and candidates we will not get there. Let’s make polluting cars a distant memory.”
Lambeth Council deputy leader Rezina Chowdhury said: “It is very important that we clean our air, so we recently made the decision to tax vehicles based on their emissions. Those who pollute more must pay more and diesel cars must pay more.”
