Driving in
Driving in Oxford
Checked on 30 June 2025.Office for National Statistics, Population estimates, local authority based by single year of age (mid-2025) (as of 30 June 2025)
The Oxford Zero Emission Zone pilot
Exempt
2004 petrol car: Oxford Zero Emission Zone pilot does not charge cars, whatever they are registered as. The charge here applies to ultra low emission vehicle, low emission vehicle and any other petrol or diesel vehicle, including hybrids.
Exempt
2012 diesel car: Oxford Zero Emission Zone pilot does not charge cars, whatever they are registered as. The charge here applies to ultra low emission vehicle, low emission vehicle and any other petrol or diesel vehicle, including hybrids.
Exempt
2018 diesel car: Oxford Zero Emission Zone pilot does not charge cars, whatever they are registered as. The charge here applies to ultra low emission vehicle, low emission vehicle and any other petrol or diesel vehicle, including hybrids.
| Operated by | Oxfordshire County Council and Oxford City Council |
| In force since | 28 February 2022 |
| Hours | 07:00 to 19:00, seven days a week, all year round. |
| Area | 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. |
| Penalty for non payment | £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. |
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.
What is different about driving in Oxford?
Oxford is covered by the Oxford Zero Emission Zone pilot, so an older car pays a daily charge that the same car would not pay in most of the country. Vehicle tax, fuel duty and speeding penalties are national and identical everywhere.
Local figures for Oxford
- Oxford has the first zero emission zone in Britain, which started on 28 February 2022. It covers nine city centre streets, including Queen Street, Cornmarket Street, New Inn Hall Street and Ship Street.
- Every petrol and diesel vehicle in those streets pays between £2 and £10 a day depending on its emissions, and the charge applies from 07:00 to 19:00, seven days a week.
- 32.1% of Oxford households had no car or van at the 2021 census, against 23.5% across England.
- About 49,300 licensed cars were recorded in the Oxford district at the end of March 2026, the smallest fleet of any place on this site.
- The city had 279 public chargers at 1 April 2026, or 168.0 per 100,000 people.
The numbers behind those lines
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Vehicle fleet | 32.1% of Oxford households had no car or van at the 2021 census, against 23.5% across England. |
| Public charging | Every petrol and diesel vehicle in those streets pays between £2 and £10 a day depending on its emissions, and the charge applies from 07:00 to 19:00, seven days a week. |
| Car ownership | 32.1% of Oxford households had no car or van at the 2021 census, against 23.5% across England. |
Common questions
- Is there a clean air zone in Oxford?
- Yes. Oxford is covered by the Oxford Zero Emission Zone pilot, run by Oxfordshire County Council and Oxford City Council, in force since 28 February 2022. It operates 07:00 to 19:00, seven days a week, all year round..
- What does a car pay to drive in Oxford?
- Oxford Zero Emission Zone pilot does not charge cars, whatever they are registered as. The charge here applies to ultra low emission vehicle, low emission vehicle and any other petrol or diesel vehicle, including hybrids.
- How many public chargers are there in Oxford?
- Every petrol and diesel vehicle in those streets pays between £2 and £10 a day depending on its emissions, and the charge applies from 07:00 to 19:00, seven days a week.
- Are motoring rules different in England?
- Vehicle tax, speeding penalties and licensing are set nationally, so they are the same everywhere in Great Britain. What varies locally is whether a charging zone applies and what it costs.
Sources
- Office for National Statistics, Population estimates, local authority based by single year of age (mid-2025) (as of 30 June 2025)
- Office for National Statistics, Population estimates for England and Wales: mid-2025 (as of 29 July 2026)
- Office for National Statistics, Census 2021, TS045 car or van availability (as of 21 March 2021)
- Department for Transport, Vehicle licensing statistics, table VEH0105 (2026 Q1) (as of 31 March 2026)
- Department for Transport, Electric vehicle charging infrastructure statistics, table EVCI0102 (as of 1 April 2026)
- Oxfordshire County Council, Charges for Oxford's zero emission zone (ZEZ) (as of 28 February 2022)
- Oxford City Council, Oxford Zero Emission Zone (ZEZ) Pilot (as of 28 February 2022)
- Oxfordshire County Council, About Oxford's zero emission zone (ZEZ) (as of 28 February 2022)
- Oxfordshire County Council, Fines for non-payment of zero emission zone (ZEZ) charges (as of 30 July 2026)
- Oxfordshire County Council, Apply for a zero emission zone discount (as of 30 July 2026)