There’s a lot of anger over Low Emission Zones (LEZs) and ULEZs – Ultra LEZs. And there shouldn’t be, as making a cleaner atmosphere for our future generations needs to be enacted now, not later. But once again, I feel it’s a blanket ‘one size fits all’ idea, and there should have been more flexibility in how ULEZs are implemented.
And the venomous social media hatred being directed at the current London Mayor, Sadiq Khan, is misplaced, unhelpful and wholly unnecessary. For a start, the ULEZ was a policy of the previous Mayor, a certain Boris ‘Bullshitter’ Johnson, a man who has long had an uncomfortable relationship with the truth. But Khan is bearing the brunt of the flak. And he shouldn’t be ashamed of trying to reduce emissions.
The fact is we need lower emissions in big cities and we can’t delay. This policy is not necessarily aimed at old gits like me, but my daughter, and ultimately her kids and her kids’ kids. And despite what Barry from rainy South Shields might tell you on Facebook, Global warming is a real, genuine threat to us all. You would also do well to ignore the diatribe GB ‘News’ and Fox News pumps out on the matter as well!
But, here’s why I think draconian ULEZ legislation is a little misplaced, as a rule, the road haulage industry is reducing its emissions. Not just by legislation but simply by technological advancements.
As I have said before, Euro 6 trucks are already incredibly clean, especially when compared with Euro 0 (and indeed, even Euro 3, 4 and 5) trucks. There’s not much more that can be done to clean up a diesel engine any further. And diesel isn’t overly ‘dirty’ in a Euro 6e truck!
Electric trucks are great, but they are still in their infancy in the grand scheme of things. But that said, the progress is rapid, and the new electric trucks being offered now are better than those of just two or three years ago, and they will continue to get better.
But they have their drawbacks, least of all price, but their biggest Achilles Heel is the lack of suitable infrastructure to recharge them both during the day and, especially, overnight. But – I hope – that will be addressed, and soon, electric trucks will be the norm. Assuming, of course, they are affordable for operators to run!
Plenty of trucks still do not meet ULEZ criteria but are still too good to go for export or scrap, but the fact is they don’t go into London every day.
I think operators of a certain number of trucks, say ten, should be granted an exemption for a limited number of trips into a ULEZ with a non-compliant truck. Say five times a year for each vehicle. If they are going in more regularly than that, then, yes, they should look to upgrade their vehicles, but for occasional uses, why should they be penalised when serving the UK plc?
Why should they have to forgo a job, or have to charge their customers the ULEZ levy or fork out £100,000 plus to upgrade their tractor unit?
Also, Euro 6 has been with us for almost ten years. How many non-Euro 6 trucks are they still running? Not many I would venture. And besides, the fuel returns of, say, a new Volvo FH Turbo Compound, a Scania Super Series, a Mercedes Actros and all other current products are so much better than a Euro 5 engine, it’s in an operator’s interest to have upgraded – not to mention they are so much better for the drivers.
And that’s another point: if modern trucks are using less fuel, they are, by logic, creating lower emissions
Also, if the result of binning off older trucks is that they end up on a boat to Africa or elsewhere, aren’t we just shifting our emissions to somewhere else in the world? Last time I looked, global warming affected the whole planet, not just Europe! Is that not just a bit NIMBYist? Or does air quality in Africa not count?
The big companies, the Culinas, Maritimes, Turners, Wincantons of this world can and do regularly upgrade their fleet so they always have the latest kit. They can also try out alternative fuels much easier. They get massive discounts when ordering trucks in their hundreds.
But the chap who has one, two, ten trucks and is regularly being squeezed on margins by the aforementioned big boys can’t always do the same. And it is they who need these restricted number of exemptions.
I consider myself concerned about emissions and global warming, as should everyone, but I also consider myself pragmatic. Rome wasn’t built in a day, so let the transition to new fuels be done sensibly and pragmatically. But more importantly, rather than hammering operators, perhaps the government could do something to address the dire lack of charging infrastructure if it wants us all – car drivers and hauliers – to switch to electric power!
