The Birmingham Clean Air Zone
Background
The subject of poor air quality has become increasingly prevalent in Birmingham over the last decade and it was no surprise to see that the city, along with five others outside of London, was mandated by the European Commission and the Government to introduce a Clean Air Zone by 2020.
The Zone was due to go live in the summer, however, due to the Coronavirus pandemic, Birmingham City Council have put the start date back to the summer in order to allow businesses and residents to recover from the fallout of COVID-19 – click Here for more details. The Clean Air Zone subsequently went live on 1st June 2021.
The Council’s proposal, which rests on charging heavily polluting vehicles for entering into parts of the city centre (covering all of the roads within but not including the A4540 middle way ring road - see map), is likely to impact a number of GBCC members that operate in and travel through the area.
Birmingham City Council opened a formal consultation in regards to their plans in the summer of 2018 and the GBCC formally submitted its consultation response in August 2018.
GBCC Consultation Response to the Birmingham Clean Air
The following tasks were undertaken in a bid to collate feedback from our members which has been used to inform the consultation response:
- Hosted a private lunch with GBCC Patrons and Councillor Waseem Zaffar, Birmingham City Council Cabinet Member for Transport & Environment to discuss the impact the proposed zone is likely to have on the local business community
- Held a private roundtable with senior officers from Birmingham City Council along with key regional stakeholders and a range of GBCC members to share feedback on the Council’s proposals
- Sent out a survey to over 16,000 business contacts in Greater Birmingham in order to gain a deeper appreciation of the information and support businesses would like to receive in the run-up to the start of the zone.
GBCC CONSULTATION RESPONSE TO THE BIRMINGHAM CLEAN AIR ZONE
GBCC & Birmingham City Council – Stakeholder Engagement Plan
When the Zone was due to go live this year, throughout 2019, the GBCC formally partnered with Birmingham City Council in a bid to raise awareness of the Zone amongst the business community and to ensure firms are fully prepared for the advent of the Zone.
A subsequent survey conducted amongst our membership last year revealed that:
- 77% of firms had heard of the Clean Air Zone
- 64% weren’t aware that support is available for businesses that are likely to be affected by its rollout
- In terms of specific support requested by local companies, 76% wanted general information on the CAZ
As a result, the GBCC has partnered with Birmingham City Council to produce the Business Clean Air Zone Toolkit. The online document provides a raft of information on:
- The geographical boundaries of the Zone
- Whether your vehicle is compliant with the new legislation
- The charges you will face is your vehicle is not compliant
- General information on what you can do to prepare for the roll out of the Zone
- How you can access support if you are affected by the start of the Zone
- How you can help spread the word about the Zone
- An action checklist to ensure you are ready for summer 2021
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE TOOLKIT FOR BUSINESSES
Briefing Events
In a bid to raise awareness of the Zone amongst the business community, the GBCC has held a number of briefing events with representatives from Birmingham City Council and private sector partners – click here and here for more information
The GBCC is planning to host further events in the run-up to the start of the Zone in order to help businesses fully prepare for the start of the Zone – full details will be shared in due course.
Podcasts
Paul Faulkner, former CEO of the GBCC and Councillor Waseem Zaffar OBE, Cabinet Member for Birmingham City Council – Transport & Environment produced a podcast outlining how firms can prepare for the Zone and the steps in place to secure further support
Introducing Travel Plans for Businesses
Effective travel planning will play an important role in helping businesses prepare for the start of the Clean Air Zone
In this section, you will find a briefing paper produced in partnership with the GBCC & BCC on the steps that firms can put in place to help their staff use alternative modes of transport where possible, a link to a briefing event which included presentations from the likes of National Express and the University of Birmingham on how they’ve embedded travel plans as part our their output and a podcast with Councillor Waseem Zaffar which covers the wider travel planning agenda.
CLICK HERE TO REVIEW BRIEFING PAPER
CLICK HERE TO WATCH BRIEFING EVENT
Additional Support
The GBCC are hosting a number of workshops ahead of June which will help businesses prepare for the start of the Zone; topics will cover how businesses can upgrade their vehicles, access financial support and encourage staff to use alternative modes of transport.
Click below for more information on how SMEs can access financial support
The GBCC also held a webinar in partnership with Birmingham City Council and DEFRA on how businesses with fleet can use the online payment system to use the Birmingham Clean Air Zone. Click on the link below to watch the webinar