Only 2% of London’s ULEZ scrapped vans replaced by EVs

New data suggests that just 2% of polluting vans scrapped under London's Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) scrappage scheme have actually been replaced with electric vehicles.

According to campaign groups Clean Cities and Transport & Environment, Transport for London (TfL) data shows that of the 16,579 approved applications to scrap a petrol or diesel van between January 2023 to May 2024, only 372 were replaced with an electric vehicle – despite TfL offering over £100 million in funding to support businesses.

The ULEZ scrappage scheme, launched by the Mayor of London in 2023, provided financial assistance to help Londoners and businesses replace the most polluting vehicles in preparation for the ULEZ expansion across all London boroughs.

"The Mayor’s van scrappage scheme is commendable, but with only 2% of businesses switching to electric vans, more support is needed," said Oliver Lord, UK Head of the Clean Cities Campaign.

Recent polling commissioned by Clean Cities reveals that two thirds of Londoners believe small businesses need more support to switch. The survey, which included 4,000 UK adults, also found that 59% of Londoners want their councils to take stronger action against air pollution, and nearly half believe delivery vehicles negatively impact their local roads.

Lord said, "Our polling shows that Londoners expect businesses to play their part in cleaning the air, but additional support is crucial to make electric vans a viable option."

Additional analysis from Transport & Environment, Europe’s leading clean transport group, shows that since 2014 the number of vans on UK roads has increased by over a million, and carbon emissions from vans have risen by 63% since 1990. Furthermore, diesel van sales are still increasing and accounted for 90% of all new van sales in 2023.

Lord commented, “The continued rise in van emissions in the UK is alarming. Despite the push for more electric vans on our roads, we are still witnessing a surge in greenhouse gas emissions from vans as a result of sustained sales of diesel vans, countering trends we are seeing in the car market.”

Ralph Palmer, UK Electric Vehicle and Fleets Officer at Transport & Environment added, “It’s clear that more action is needed to boost electric van demand among fleets to ensure we achieve the triple-win of tackling emissions, reducing running costs for small businesses and boosting energy security. The new government should bring forward plans for stronger financial support and action to improve the nation’s charging infrastructure for van drivers to ensure the UK doesn’t continue to fall behind other European countries.”

“The newly re-elected London Mayor and a new government offers a unique opportunity to double down and deliver the regulatory certainty, incentives and infrastructure that businesses need so that electric vans become the norm and not a nice to have.”