Glasgow Low Emission Zone sees 38,000 fines handed out in first year

Over 38,000 Low Emission Zone fines were handed out in Glasgow in its first year — with almost £1 million collected by the council.

A breakdown of penalty charges shows more than 25,000 have been paid, bringing in £982,415. The net revenue received by Glasgow City Council is £747,511.

The LEZ, which covers Glasgow city centre, was initially rolled out in 2018 to apply to buses. It came into effect for all vehicles in May 2022 and enforcement began after a one-year grace period.

Glasgow’s LEZ has been created to reduce levels of harmful vehicle emissions.

First annual report

The figures are revealed in the first annual report on the zone, which covers the period from when enforcement began on June 1, 2023 up to the end of March this year.

It shows that 5,692 appeals against fines have been received, with 31% (1,765) of those successful.

Fines have mostly been cancelled due to the recipient being a blue badge holder, providing evidence their vehicle was LEZ compliant or exempt, or the vehicle registration being entered incorrectly.

Unsuccessful appeals have been referred to an independent adjudicator on 181 occasions. Of these, 46 weren’t contested by the council and the fine was cancelled, generally due to “additional evidence” being presented, while a further 46 appeals were allowed by the adjudicator.

Six were withdrawn by the applicant, 11 were unsuccessful and 55 still awaiting a hearing at the time of the report.

In total, the council received £993,935 over the period, but £11,520 was refunded following appeals and cancellations.

Penalty charges

The majority of payments received (21,137) related to the first level of penalty charge, which, if paid within 14 days, has a 50% discount on the charge rate, costing £30 rather than £60.

Surcharging, where the fine doubles for subsequent LEZ breaches by the same vehicle, started in July after a “period of familiarisation” in June.

The net revenue of £747,511 is the “amount of funding allocable to future projects” after the council’s own expenditure for 2023/24 of £234,904 has been deducted. There was also £564,371 of grant-funded expenditure, covered by the Scottish Government.

Overall, the total expenditure on the zone since 2018 is £1,962,783.

The report adds: “Development of the Glasgow LEZ has been ongoing since 2018/19, with the majority of the associated costs grant funded by the Scottish Government.

“The LEZ scheme design detailed the incurred costs of development prior to the LEZ scheme approval. These costs provided for LEZ modelling, appraisal, communications, engagement, impact assessments, design works, LEZ signage and enforcement camera infrastructure.

“Costs incurred since scheme approval include further development costs and operational costs since enforcement began on June 1, 2023.”

The available revenue can be used for “projects which contribute towards meeting the relevant air quality objectives” or towards emissions reduction targets.

In February, the council set a budget which allocated £250,000 for city greening and tree planting and a further £25,000 for “broader climate action activity”. A report on that funding is expected next month.