About the Clean Air Zone

What is a charging Clean Air Zone?

A charging Clean Air Zone is designed to improve local air quality by reducing levels of pollution caused by traffic.

Within a charging Clean Air Zone (CAZ), drivers are required to pay a charge if their vehicle does not meet national minimum emissions standards.

Charges would only apply to the most polluting vehicles, so newer and lower emissions vehicles would not be affected. Charges are paid per day, not per visit.

The type of vehicle that would be affected depends upon the category of the CAZ. There are four different categories, which are set by the government.

The table below shows which vehicles are included in each category. The CAZ in Newcastle and Gateshead will be a category C CAZ.

How does a Clean Air Zone improve air quality?

A Clean Air Zone encourages people and businesses to replace or upgrade higher polluting vehicles in order to avoid having to pay a daily CAZ charge.

As part of the CAZ implementation, financial support is offered to those with vehicles that are affected. This includes vehicle upgrade grants to help towards the cost of purchasing a newer vehicle or retrofitting an existing vehicle to reduce its emissions.

The aim is to reduce the number of higher polluting vehicles that use our roads, which in turn helps to reduce the overall levels of harmful traffic emissions that affect our air quality.

Does a Clean Air Zone reduce traffic within the area it covers?

A Clean Air Zone is not specifically intended to reduce the amount of traffic in an area.

The main aim is to reduce pollution levels by encouraging drivers and businesses to operate cleaner vehicles with lower emissions.

Why are you introducing a Clean Air Zone in Newcastle and Gateshead?

Newcastle and Gateshead councils are among a number of local authorities across the country that have been issued with a legal direction by government.

This legal direction demands that we take action to reduce illegal levels of air pollution caused by traffic in certain areas. A further update to the legal direction has since been published by government .

There is also a Charging Order that sets out details of how the CAZ will work and which vehicles are affected.

The direction requires us to take action that will reduce pollution levels in the shortest possible time. We have looked at alternatives, but none were found to be as effective in tackling pollution as quickly as a Clean Air Zone.

Other cities, including Birmingham, Bath, Bradford, Bristol, Portsmouth and Sheffield, have also launched Clean Air Zones .

Poor air quality is linked with a number of serious health conditions, including heart disease, cancer and breathing problems. It is more likely to harm those who are older, children, those with existing health conditions and those who spend a lot of time sitting in vehicles in traffic, either driving or as a passenger.

Pollution is a serious threat to health and it’s important that we tackle it.

How were the plans decided?

We originally consulted on proposals for a Clean Air Zone in 2019 and more than 20,000 people and businesses from across the region took part.

Their responses, along with updated information and figures showing how different actions would affect levels of pollution, were used to help us develop the final plans that will be implemented.

When will the CAZ start?

The Clean Air Zone launched on 30 January 2023 for non-compliant taxis, private hire vehicles, minibuses, buses, coaches and HGVs.

Charges for non-compliant light goods vehicles and vans began on 17 July 2023.

How will I know when I am entering the CAZ?

There are 38 cameras and 43 entry signs around the boundary of the zone to alert drivers.

There are an additional 96 signs giving advanced information outside of the zone and a further 51 reminder signs inside the zone.

You can check whether your route takes you into the Clean Air Zone using our interactive map.

What happens to the money that is collected in CAZ charges?

Any income from Clean Air Zones is primarily used to cover the running costs of the scheme. Any leftover money will be used to improve local transport, which can include improvements to public transport and cycling and walking schemes.

It is not designed to raise revenue for the local authority, but to reduce pollution and improve air quality.

Local authorities are not permitted to use any charging scheme as a revenue-raising measure.

Under the Transport Act 2000, the net proceeds of any charging schemes made under the Act, including a Clean Air Zone, can only be used by a local authority for the purpose of helping towards the delivery of local transport policies. This can include the promotion of cycling and walking and other sustainable transport measures.

Will the CAZ be permanent?

The Government expects local authorities to remove the elements of the zone that are no longer required at the earliest opportunity.

Any restrictions or charging of polluting vehicles should be time-limited and lifted as soon as the air pollution is within legal limits, the risk of future breaches has passed and there is evidence that the improvement in air quality would be maintained.

We will carry out ongoing monitoring of the impact of the CAZ in Newcastle and Gateshead to assess the impact on pollution, including the forecast for future levels.

Could the CAZ move traffic onto other routes, creating pollution problems there instead?

When developing the plans for the Clean Air Zone we looked at modelling data that predicts the impact different measures will have on things like traffic flows and routes.

The Clean Air Zone boundary that has been agreed was found to result in fewer vehicles diverting to avoid the zone when compared to alternative options.

As the Newcastle and Gateshead CAZ mostly covers the city centre, it’s anticipated that most of the traffic entering the zone will be visiting the city centre and therefore unlikely to divert onto other routes.

Drivers not intending to visit the city centre would be already expected to use alternative major roads, such as the A1 and A19, which are more appropriate routes for long distance and regional traffic.

Many drivers, operators and small businesses will choose to upgrade or retrofit non-compliant vehicles, resulting in a cleaner and less-polluting overall fleet using roads not just within the Clean Air Zone but also in the surrounding areas.