London's low-emission zone will go live on 8 April 2019, London mayor Sadiq Khan has confirmed.

After this date, HGVs not meeting Euro-6 emission standards will have to pay £100 per day to operate in the affected area while non-Euro-6 vans and other smaller vehicles will pay £12.50.

The fees are in addition to the existing congestion charge, but will replace the T-Charge that came into effect last month.

Khan originally announced the start date in March this year, ahead of a consultation period on the tax.

TfL said that revenue generated by the 24-hour ULEZ will be used to "maintain a greener transport fleet and reduce pollution across the transport network".

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan hopes to extend the ULEZ as far as the North and South Circular roads by 2021, with a consultation on this expected before the end of the year.

Khan said the ULEZ "builds on the success of the T-Charge and is part of my comprehensive plan to clean London’s air".

He added: “London’s lethal air is one of the biggest health challenges of this generation. We can’t continue breathing in air so toxic it harms children’s lung development and causes chronic illness and premature death. I am determined to take the bold action needed to address this scourge once and for all."

Industry trade associations have previously warned that the ULEZ will put London operators at a severe disadvantage, and today the RHA said it was "outraged" by the moved-up start date.

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RHA chief executive Richard Burnett accused TfL of using the early launch of the ULEZ as a "means of quickly bringing in revenue to cover the Mayor’s other plans for the City".

Burnett added: "More than half the GB lorry fleet will not be Euro-6 when the ULEZ is introduced. The trucks being penalised are responsible for delivering London’s economy, they fill London’s shelves with food and the other goods we depend on.

"This industry is already doing all it can to meet air quality standards. But, the acquisition of new vehicles has been planned on the previous Mayor’s original dates.

"Lorries last about 12 years, to announce a 17 months early adoption of the scheme is not giving operators sufficient time to phase out older vehicles and replace them with Euro-6."

Earlier this year FTA head of policy for London and the South East, Natalie Chapman, said the impact of the new legislation will be particularly hard on van users.

“By 2019 there will only be two and a half years’ worth of compliant vehicles in the fleet – and no second hand compliant vehicles available for purchase,” she said.

TfL’s director for city planning, Alex Williams, said: “Bringing forward the introduction of the central London ULEZ was popular with the public in the consultation and will be pivotal in dramatically reducing harmful emissions.

"It also gives drivers and businesses the certainty they need when deciding to buy new vehicles, as well as being a catalyst for people to make more sustainable travel choices."

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