Ulez: Emission zone boundary roads near Bucks

The controversial emission zone expanded to all London boroughs from August 29 as part of the London mayor’s efforts to cut harmful pollution in the capital, which regularly suffers from poor air quality. 

Now drivers in London face a £12.50 daily charge if their vehicle falls short of the emission standards.

Here is what drivers need to know about Ulez.

Ulez applies only in London

Ulez operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week on every day of the year except on Christmas Day (December 25) in Greater London.

It does not cover Buckinghamshire or other home counties and there are no plans to bring Ulez to Bucks.

READ MORE: Ulez: Bucks driver supports emission zone in London after mum's death

The areas nearest to Bucks where drivers need to pay the charge include Hillingdon, where Heathrow Airport is located. The airport, its entrances and the nearby roads are inside Ulez.

Where is the boundary near Bucks?

Here is a list of roads near Buckinghamshire where the Ulez boundary has been drawn.

• M25 is outside of the Ulez. At Heathrow Terminal 5 roundabout, all exits apart from the M25 are inside the zone.
• Iver Lane B470 – Outside the Ulez until the junction with High Street in Uxbridge. At the junction, the High Street going south is inside Ulez, while driving north is outside the zone. Going north, all roads off the High Street are inside Ulez. At the roundabout with Cowley Road, all exits apart from the High Street are inside the zone.
• Thorney Mill Road – Outside of Ulez until it goes through Mabey Meadows nature reserve. From that point east, Thorney Mill Road is inside the zone.
• A4007 Slough Road (Iver) – Outside of the Ulez. At the junction with Cowley Road, the junction itself is outside the zone while all exits apart from the A4007 and Oxford Road are inside Ulez.
• Colnbrook By-Pass – From the junction with Stanwell Moor Road, the by-pass going east is inside the Ulez. Going west towards Slough, Colnbrook By-Pass is outside Ulez.
• Oxford Road – After the bridge over River Colne going west, all roads on both side of Oxford Road are outside Ulez. On Uxbridge side, all roads off Oxford Road to the east are inside Ulez, while all roads west are outside the zone. 

The Ulez area after the expansion on August 29 (Image: PA Media)

• Swakeleys Roundabout – From the roundabout, Swakeleys Road B467 is outside of Ulez until the junction with Harvil Road. Beyond that, Swakeleys Road is inside Ulez.
• Harvil Road (near Denhm) – Harvil Road is outside the Ulez until the junction with Moorhall Road. Beyond that going north, Harvil Road is inside the Ulez. All roads off Harvil Road to the east are inside the zone, while all roads to the west are outside the Ulez. Moorhall Road itself is outside the Ulez.
• Copper Mill Lane – The lane is outside the Ulez until the bridge of the River Colne. Beyond that going east when it becomes Park Lane, it is inside the Ulez.
• Springwell Lane – The lane is outside the Ulez although it passes through the boundary. Springwell Lane is outside the zone until the bridge by Springwell Lock, where from going south Springwell Lane is inside the zone.
• Rickmansworth Road- Outside the Ulez. All roads off it to the west are inside the zone, while all roads east are outside the Ulez. At the roundabout with Park Lane, all exits are inside the Ulez except Rickmansworth Road and Breakspear Road North.
• White Hill – Where Northwood Road becomes White Hill, it is outside the Ulez. Jackets Lane is inside the zone, while Mount Vernon Hospital is outside the Ulez. 9
• Green Lane (Rickmansworth) – Outside the Ulez until the junction with Watford Road. Areas beyond that going east is inside the zone. All roads off Green Lane to the south are inside the zone and all roads to the north are outside the Ulez.
• Watford Road (Rickmansworth) – Outside the Ulez at the Green Lane junction. All roads to the east are inside the zone, while roads to the west are not in the Ulez.

What cars are Ulez compliant?

The emission standards are calculated based on the vehicle and emission type according to the Euro standard.

In general, petrol cars first registered as new with the DVLA after 2005 and diesel cars first registered with the DVLA as new after September 2015 usually meet the Ulez standards, Transport for London said.

The Ulez standards for different types of vehicles are:  

• Euro 3 for motorcycles, mopeds, motorised tricycles and quadricycles (L category)
• Euro 4 (NOx) for petrol cars, vans, minibuses and other specialist vehicles
• Euro 6 (NOx and PM) for diesel cars, vans and minibuses and other specialist vehicles

Owners of newer vehicles can usually find the Euro emission standards listed in the section D.2 of their vehicle’s logbook.

Drivers can check if their vehicle is Ulez compliant by using the Tfl tool here.  

Ulez scrappage scheme

The support scheme, which helps Londoners to swap their polluting vehicles for greener alternatives, doesn’t benefit Buckinghamshire residents.

The scrappage scheme is only available to people, small businesses, micro businesses, sole traders and charities based at any of the 32 London boroughs or the City of London.

Individuals in London could be eligible to get £2,000 for scrapping a car or up to £1,000 for getting rid of a motorcycle.

Owners of wheelchair accessible vehicles could get a payment of £10,000 to scrap it or £6,000 to retrofit the vehicle to make it Ulez compliant.