Sadiq Khan’s Ulez expansion rakes in £715,000 a day as more than 57,000 drivers pay the zone’s fee

• An average of 57,200 drivers daily are paying £12.50 to enter the London zone
• READ: Khan’s Ulez scheme will add 13 minutes to life expectancy of Londoners 

Sadiq Khan’s expansion of London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez) means the scheme is now bringing in £715,000 a day – more than double the previous amount.

According to a report, an average of 57,200 drivers daily are paying £12.50 to enter the London zone.

This is up from 24,712 earlier this summer before Ulez’s dramatic expansion, which came into force on August 29 and pushed the zone all the way to the boundaries of the M25.

It means the Labour Mayor’s scheme is now raking in £715,000 a day on average – or £22.1 million in the first month of its expansion.

Before, it was netting just over £300,000 daily on average, or around £9.5 million a month. The figures do not include money from fines for non-compliance.

Sadiq Khan’s expansion of London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez) means the scheme is now bringing in £715,000 a day – more than double the previous amount

According to a report, an average of 57,200 drivers daily are paying £12.50 to enter the London zone

Breakdowns from potholes at 5-year high 

The number of breakdowns caused by potholes has reached a five-year high, statistics reveal.

Repair crews from the AA attended over 47,200 accident sites caused by potholes in September – the highest for the month since 2018 and a 10 per cent rise on last September which saw 42,152 incidents. It comes as analysis by the Asphalt Industry Alliance, which represents road makers, shows local councils underspent on road repairs by £8.5million this year, up from £3.4million in 2018. In a victory for The Mail’s campaign, Jeremy Hunt has announced an additional £200million for improving roads.

On average 2,696 fines a day are being issued by the legion of cameras Mr Khan has deployed to enforce the scheme.

With most drivers paying a reduced £90 rate if paid within 14 days, it is raking in nearly £250,000 more a day from fines. Only drivers of older, polluting vehicles, who tend to be poorer or vulnerable motorists, are charged the £12.50 fee.

The charge generally applies to petrol cars made before 2005 and diesel cars made before 2015.

Paul Scully, the minister for London, said: ‘Whilst the Mayor rakes in millions of pounds, it’s primarily the people in outer London who can least afford it who are paying.’

He added: ‘Enough is enough. The cameras need to be switched off.’ Mr Khan’s expansion of the zone sparked anger across outer London and those in the Home Counties who cross the border for work or leisure.

And despite concerns it would hit poorer, elderly and vulnerable drivers the hardest, he pressed ahead with it.

Transport for London, which Mr Khan chairs, said the proportion of vehicles that comply with the emissions zone has increased from 85 per cent in May 2022 to 95 per cent. Mr Khan said: ‘I’ve always said that the decision to expand the Ulez was very difficult, but a month on from the expansion we can already see that it is working.

‘This will make a huge difference to the lives and health of Londoners.’ A scheme providing up to £2,000 for Londoners to scrap a non-compliant vehicle remains open, but many say it is not enough.

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