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Birmingham clean air charge 'another tax' say drivers

BBC The A38BBC
The proposals will include much of the city centre, said the council

A planned clean air zone charge in Birmingham city centre has been labelled as "another tax" by disgruntled drivers.

Up to £10 per day could be paid by car drivers in the proposed Clean Air Zone (CAZ) and as much as £100 for HGVs.

Some drivers said "something needs to be done" to deal with air pollution, while others said the charge will cause "even more stress" to their journeys.

The council said the plan would address "one of its biggest challenges".

The CAZ will include all the roads within the A4540 Middleway ring road, Birmingham City Council has said.

The authority has been given a final warning to clean up its air by 2020.

Birmingham City Council Map of proposed clean air zoneBirmingham City Council
The proposed Clean Air Zone will include much of the city centre, said the local authority

David Lacy commented on the BBC Midlands Facebook page that "something needs to be done" to address air pollution in the city.

Kelly-Anne Adams-Fielding said the charge would cause "even more stress" to hospital appointments and that "it's bad enough having to pay for parking".

Mervyn Malicki said: "This is another nail in the coffin for city centres. Yet another tax disguised as something doing us good."

Traffic on A38 near The Mailbox
The council said any surplus money would go back into the transport budget

But Chris Marshall said: "Brilliant news. Can't wait for a cleaner air zone."

Rob Pearce said: "I do think they need to look at some sort of sliding scale though so cars that just miss the standard aren't hit the same as the most polluting vehicles."

Speaking of the plan, West Midlands Mayor Andy Street said: "We all have a part to play in overcoming air pollution."