Clean Air Zone, class D
Birmingham Clean Air Zone
The widest English class. It reaches private cars, and a council may add motorbikes to it.
Local detail
What is specific to Birmingham
Birmingham's zone went live on 1 June 2021 and is one of only two class D zones in England, which means private cars pay. The first fortnight was charge free, with daily charges starting on 14 June 2021. The A4540 Middleway is the part people get wrong: the ring road is outside the zone, so a non-compliant car can circle the centre for nothing, and the £8 charge only lands once it turns in.
5 vehicle types
What each vehicle pays
| Vehicle | Daily charge | Standard that avoids it |
|---|---|---|
| Car | £8 | Euro 4 (petrol) or Euro 6 (diesel) |
| Taxi or private hire vehicle | £8 | Euro 4 (petrol) or Euro 6 (diesel) |
| Van or light goods vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes | £8 | Euro 4 (petrol) or Euro 6 (diesel) |
| Bus, coach or HGV | £50 | Euro VI |
| Motorcycle | Not charged | No standard is published for this row |
One daily charge covers however many times you enter and leave in the same day. It does not cover any other scheme that overlaps the same streets.
What the vehicle has to meet
Emissions standards
- Cars, taxis, private hire vehicles and vans: Euro 4 for petrol, Euro 6 for diesel.
- Buses, coaches and HGVs: Euro VI.
- Motorcycles are not charged. A class D zone may include them, and Birmingham chose not to.
The Euro standard is recorded on the vehicle's type approval rather than worked out from its age, so a car built in the year a standard came in can fall either side of it. Check the registration date on the V5C against the operator's own vehicle checker before relying on either.
Where and when
Boundary and hours
- Boundary
- Everything inside the A4540 Middleway ring road. The Middleway itself is outside the zone, so you can drive right round the city centre without paying, but almost every turn off it takes you in.
- Hours of operation
- 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
- Enforcement since
- 1 June 2021
4 exemptions and discounts
Who does not pay
- Motorcycles.
- Fully electric and hydrogen vehicles, which meet the standard by definition.
- Vehicles holding a council exemption permit, applied for through Birmingham City Council.
- The council's vehicle scrappage and travel credit scheme has closed to new applications.
Most of these have to be applied for, and several are time limited. An exemption you have not registered is not an exemption the cameras know about.
If you do not pay
Penalty charge
£120, with 28 days to pay from the date the notice was issued, reduced to £60 if you pay within 14 days.
Questions about this zone
Does a car pay in the Birmingham Clean Air Zone?
Yes, if it misses the standard. A car that does not meet the published standard pays £8 for each day it is driven inside the zone, and a car that meets it pays nothing at all. One payment covers as many entries as you make that day.
When does the zone operate?
24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Enforcement started on 1 June 2021, and those hours have applied since, unless the operator has published a change.
Where does the zone start and end?
Everything inside the A4540 Middleway ring road. The Middleway itself is outside the zone, so you can drive right round the city centre without paying, but almost every turn off it takes you in. The cameras belong to the operator, so treat that description as the route to plan around rather than a guess at where enforcement begins.
What is the penalty if I do not pay?
£120, with 28 days to pay from the date the notice was issued, reduced to £60 if you pay within 14 days.
Who is exempt?
4 exemptions and discounts are published for this zone, including: Motorcycles; Fully electric and hydrogen vehicles, which meet the standard by definition; Vehicles holding a council exemption permit, applied for through Birmingham City Council. Most have to be applied for in advance, so read the full list before you travel.