Ulez concerns on London border three years on

Three years after London's Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez) expanded across the capital, businesses and residents on the border of the scheme have said strong feelings remain, although many have adapted.

Ulez expanded to cover all London boroughs on 29 August 2023, which put areas such as Dartford and Swanley in Kent, and Epsom and Staines in Surrey on the edge of the zone.

Businesses on both sides of the zone described the difficulties some customers faced from the £12.50 daily charge and said complaints remain.

Transport for London (TfL) acknowledged frustration outside London and said it had wanted to extend its scrappage scheme beyond the capital, but funding was not available.

Beauty salon owner Natalie Potter said the first months after the expansion were "quite damaging" for her Crayford business, in the London borough of Bexley.

"A lot of working mums couldn't get a new car," she said, "so they just went down the road to a different salon in Dartford".

Opposition to the scheme was initially strong, she added, with campaigners damaging Ulez cameras.

Potter said: "The first three months were really difficult, we lost a lot of clientele. Actually now though, we are really busy again and we have since got those clients back."

Pam Manwaring, a director of Orchard Garage in Dartford, said customers still complained and people living near the London boundary had few alternatives to driving.

She said the garage, outside the Ulez zone, saw a boost initially because people didn't want to pay the charge, but three years on, it had "levelled out".

Manwaring said people in Dartford were paying the charge but not benefitting from the clean air that it was supposed to bring, adding: "The Dartford tunnel and the crossing is an absolute nightmare. The traffic is getting worse, it's bad every day, so we get even more pollution and we get the congestion."

She said poor public transport remained a concern, adding: "You haven't got an option around here, people have to use their cars."

TfL said the Ulez scheme had improved air quality inside and outside the capital.

Head of transport policy, Lucy Hayward-Speight, said: "I do understand the frustration of people outside of London where they don't have access to as good public transport.

"I know that lots of efforts are being made to improve public transport across the country now and with the new £2 bus fare, hopefully that is going to encourage further bus use across the country and going to increase the amount of bus availability."

She said there was an extensive rail network in and out of London and buses were also available.

Mums for Lungs campaigner Ruth Fitzharris said the expansion had delivered significant health benefits, and the scheme had been a "massive success".

She said her child, who has asthma, was "quite a bit better", although it was hard to know how much of that was because of Ulez.

Last week, researchers said they had been "stunned" by how quickly children's lungs had begun to recover after Ulez was introduced.

A study of more than 3,400 children in London and Luton was described as the strongest evidence yet that local clean-air zones can reduce harm caused by pollution.

"It's a scheme that saved lives, it's a pioneering scheme and we're really proud of it in London," Hayward-Speight said.

Follow BBC Kent on Facebook, X, and on Instagram and listen to BBC Radio Kent on Sounds. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.