Sheffield Clean Air Zone: Protest called against charges described as ‘stealth tax’

A Facebook group, Campaign against chargeable clean air zone Sheffield, says that the protest is meeting at Pinstone Street at noon. The fast-growing group, which has 4,500 members, is one of several set up around the country by Matthew Betts and Susan Radford from Bradford, whIch has a CAZ.

Publicity for the protest says: “It’s just a couple of hours inconvenience for you, that’ll help a great cause for thousands of “at risk” businessmen and women.“What does it mean?“£10 a day to drive a small van.“£50 a day for lorries.“This will close small businesses down,“This will increase what you’re currently paying for things.“STOP IT NOW”.

Taxi drivers in the city have already presented a protest petition to the council, which agreed an automatic exemption for Hackney carriage taxis licensed with the city until June 5.

The council’s website (https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/campaigns/clean-air-zone-sheffield#VehicleExemptions) says that firms with light goods vehicles in Sheffield and Rotherham can apply for the same exemption.

The charges will apply to commercial vehicles that do not meet minimum emissions standards. Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras will monitor the charging zone.

The council website says: “Payments will need to be made online. If payments are not made within 7 days, additional penalty charges may apply. The funding from the zone can only be spent on the costs to run the zone, and projects to reduce air pollution in Sheffield.”

One member of the Facebook group called it a ‘stealth tax’ and small business owners confirm that it may force them to close. Members have reported getting letters from the council saying their number plate has been identified but there is nothing to pay before the Clean Air Zone, which encompasses the city centre and inner ring road, comes into force on February 27.

‘Unsustainable’

Clean Air Zones are already in operation in Bath, Birmingham, Bradford, Bristol, Portsmouth, Newcastle and Gateshead and one is under consideration in Greater Manchester, says the government’s YouGov website (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/driving-in-a-clean-air-zone).

Group members point out that if drivers simply pay to pollute, the plan will not cut air pollution. Several noted that 30,000 drivers a month are refusing to pay CAZ charges in Birmingham, where the council is said to be too overwhelmed to collect all the money owed.

When asked for comments on the scheme, one group member Kym White said: “There will be thousands to chose from, not a single person is in favour of this stupid tax.

“We run a fleet of lorries and Sheffield will be off our list as the cost would be unsustainable.”

Anthony Cronshaw said: “This is an attack on the working classes in Sheffield. These councillors from working class areas have forgotten who elected them.”

Leon Bingham commented: “The council have 6 expensive automatic monitoring stations around the city but the nearest one to the city centre is on the Wicker. So any figures they have produced in the city centre are from cheap manual tests which surely aren’t reliable enough to spend all our taxes on implementing this pollution tax on small businesses.”

Read this: No decision yet on future of popular park cafe building

Read this: Pupils get higher level of first-choice schools than national average