With less than six months to go until the Greater London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) expands, fleets in the South East are being urged to plan ahead for vehicle provision.
Coming into effect on 25 October 2021, the expanded ULEZ will be 18 times larger, bound by the North Circular and South Circular Roads, and runs through many neighbourhoods previously unaffected by the zone.
It is estimated that as many as 35,000 vans and 3,000 trucks driving in to London every day do not currently meet the required Euro 6 emissions standard and will be liable for the charges. And as these run from midnight to midnight, a vehicle that enters the zone at 11:00pm and leaves at 3:00am will have to pay two daily charges.
Vehicle rental is already seeing higher demand due to an increase in online shopping and home deliveries over the past 12 months. And Enterprise says the expansion of the scheme, along with higher seasonal demand for deliveries ahead of Christmas and Black Friday, and increased demand for post-accident replacement rental as a result of winter driving conditions and daylight saving, could lead to unprecedented demand for both vans and HGVs.
Danny Glynn, managing director of Enterprise Flex-E-Rent, said: “Businesses need to plan now to ensure they have access to Euro 6-compliant rental vehicles, as demand for HGVs and vans has increased through the pandemic. We are working closely with manufacturers and the supply chain to ensure we can provide a fleet of low-emission Euro 6 commercial vehicles to enable businesses operating in the area to be compliant with the expanded ULEZ.
“Demand for rental is already high and only going to increase as the deadline nears. It will also be difficult to pass on these charges as higher costs to customers if the only explanation is that the business didn’t plan ahead.”
