Zero Emission Zone
Oxford Zero Emission Zone pilot
Priced on carbon dioxide rather than vehicle type, so the newer vehicle is not always the cheaper one.
Local detail
What is specific to Oxford
This is a pilot, live since 28 February 2022, and it is tiny: nine streets around Cornmarket, not the ring road and not the park and rides. Because it charges on carbon dioxide rather than on Euro standard alone, a plug-in hybrid under 75 g/km pays £2 while a clean Euro 6 diesel pays £4, so the newer vehicle is not always the cheaper one. Several of those streets also carry bus gates and pedestrian access restrictions, so paying the £2 or £4 does not by itself make the journey legal, and the councils have said any wider zone would need a fresh consultation.
4 vehicle types
What each vehicle pays
| Vehicle | Daily charge | Standard that avoids it |
|---|---|---|
| Zero emission vehicle | No charge exists | 0 g/km CO2 |
| Ultra low emission vehicle | £2 | Under 75 g/km CO2 |
| Low emission vehicle | £4 | Euro 4 petrol or Euro 6 diesel |
| Any other petrol or diesel vehicle, including hybrids | £10 | 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
- A vehicle emitting 0 g/km CO2 pays nothing.
- An ultra low emission vehicle under 75 g/km CO2 pays £2.
- A vehicle meeting Euro 4 on petrol or Euro 6 on diesel pays £4.
- Everything else pays £10. Hybrids are charged on their tailpipe figures like any other petrol or diesel vehicle.
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
- Nine streets in the middle of the city: New Road between Bonn Square and Castle Street, Bonn Square, Queen Street, Cornmarket Street, New Inn Hall Street, Shoe Lane, the first 40 metres of Market Street east of Cornmarket, Ship Street and St Michael's Street.
- Hours of operation
- 07:00 to 19:00, seven days a week, all year round.
- Enforcement since
- 28 February 2022
9 exemptions and discounts
Who does not pay
- Blue Badge holders.
- Vehicles with disabled tax status.
- Hackney carriages and private hire vehicles, on application.
- Residents living inside the zone.
- Businesses based inside the zone.
- Health and social care workers.
- Community transport vehicles.
- Students in acute financial hardship moving in or out of the zone.
- Discounts must be applied for at least ten working days before you intend to use them.
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
£60, reduced to £30 if you pay within 14 days of the date of service. You have 28 days to pay in full or to challenge it.
Questions about this zone
Does a car pay in the Oxford Zero Emission Zone pilot?
Yes, on a sliding scale. The charge is set by the car's carbon dioxide figure rather than its body type, so it runs from nothing to £10 a day. A plug-in hybrid can pay less here than a clean diesel, which is the opposite of how most zones work.
When does the zone operate?
07:00 to 19:00, seven days a week, all year round. Enforcement started on 28 February 2022, and those hours have applied since, unless the operator has published a change.
Where does the zone start and end?
Nine streets in the middle of the city: New Road between Bonn Square and Castle Street, Bonn Square, Queen Street, Cornmarket Street, New Inn Hall Street, Shoe Lane, the first 40 metres of Market Street east of Cornmarket, Ship Street and St Michael's Street. 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?
£60, reduced to £30 if you pay within 14 days of the date of service. You have 28 days to pay in full or to challenge it.
Who is exempt?
9 exemptions and discounts are published for this zone, including: Blue Badge holders; Vehicles with disabled tax status; Hackney carriages and private hire vehicles, on application. Most have to be applied for in advance, so read the full list before you travel.