Half of Londoners believe mayor ‘should offer more ULEZ support’, poll reveals

An exclusive ITV News London poll shows half of Londoners (50%) believe the mayor should be offering more support the make sure vehicles are ULEZ compliant.

The YouGov survey of 1,000 adults in London revealed only 26% of people thought Sadiq Khan was doing everything he reasonably could. The remainder were undecided.

Speaking as the ULEZ zone expanded on Tuesday the mayor said he had received more than 15,000 applications for TfL’s ULEZ scrappage scheme in the past week. Around 14,000 vehicles had already been scrapped, he said.

The scrappage scheme is aimed at helping motorists with the costs of buying ULEZ-compliant cars and include all Londoners, with grants of £2,000 available to scrap a car.

Figures also revealed the majority of Londoners support the expansion of the ULEZ to all 32 boroughs with 47% in favour and 42% are against.

But when it comes to next year’s mayoral election it looks like voters have other issues on their mind with the cost of living their main concern. 58% said cost of living was one of their top three priorities.

Environment and air quality was only a top priority for 23% of people we surveyed. Crime, housing, health, transport and the local economy all ranked higher.

Map showing the previous ULEZ zone and the expanded area Credit: PA/TfL

London mayor Sadiq Khan has faced strong opposition to the scheme, although a £160 million scheme run by Transport for London (TfL) enables residents, small businesses, sole traders and charities scrapping non-compliant cars to claim grants.

There have been regular protests against the plan and anti-Ulez vigilantes have repeatedly targeted enforcement cameras installed in the new areas in recent months.

Videos have been posted online showing people described as Blade Runners cutting the cameras’ wires or completely removing the devices.

The Metropolitan Police said it had recorded 288 crimes relating to the cameras as of August 1.

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