Hundreds of taxi drivers signed a petition calling to cancel the Clean Air Zone saying they could not afford the £75,000 it would cost to upgrade their vehicles.

Ibrar Hussain, long-standing cab driver and former councillor, presented the petition with 275 signatures at a full council meeting.

He said: “I know we have gone a very long way down the road however, we and the whole country is [in a different position] now as you are well aware – with the cost of living crisis and everything else. This policy will affect the cab trade especially very badly.

“We only have one manufacturer of Hackney carriages in the UK and that vehicle costs £75,000. I don’t think in this climate anyone can afford a £75,000 vehicle.

Hundreds of taxi drivers signed a petition calling to cancel the Clean Air Zone saying they could not afford the £75,000 it would cost to upgrade their vehicles.

placeholder image — Hundreds of taxi drivers signed a petition calling to cancel the Clean Air Zone saying they could not afford the £75,000 it would cost to upgrade their vehicles.

“We are struggling like anyone else and I ask that – I know you are not going to cancel this because of the government – but you can delay and postpone it to give us time to breathe and work together.”

In response, councillor Julie Grocutt, co-chair of the transport, regeneration and climate change committee, said: “We completely understand your concerns and this is why we are constantly pushing government for extra financial support for those affected by the implementation of the Clean Air Zone.

“As a result, we have one of the best packages available to any local authority but we recognise this doesn’t go far enough and as government are mandating that we must do this we believe they need to do much more so people can make the upgrades needed.

“We do recognise that as a council we need to do to improve air quality for all residents in our city and making sure this is done as fairly as possible.

Ibrar Hussain, long-standing cab driver and former councillor, presented the Clean Air Zone petition on behalf of taxi drivers with 275 signatures at a full council meeting yesterday.

“We are committed to delivering the clean air across the city. We are standing by our commitment to deliver the Clean Air Zone.”

Sheffield’s Clean Air Zone

The Clean Air Zone (CAZ) is due to start from spring 2023 following delays, meaning the most polluting buses, taxis, vans, coaches and lorries will have to pay a charge for every day they drive in the inner ring road and city centre.

Charges will be £10 per day for heavily polluting vans and taxis and £50 a day for coaches, buses and lorries.