Havering was among the London boroughs with the most ULEZ scrappage scheme pay outs approved – while as many as 70,000 motorists elsewhere in the capital are yet to receive their money.
Transport for London (TfL) says that £158million has been claimed so far by people scrapping their non-compliant Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) vehicles.
However, figures show that more than half of the 65,000 car and motorbike owners in London who applied for the £2,000 payment have not had their applications approved.
While many motorists are still waiting to get a form of payment from the scheme, it seems that Havering had the third highest total funds received compared to other boroughs.
In Havering a total of 7,732 applications were put forward by car, motorcycle, van and minibus owners to get the money to support transitioning to greener modes of travel. A total of £10,610,500 was committed to people in the borough, with 2,965 applications approved.
Comparatively, only two other areas received more money for the scheme, including Croydon at £12,219,900 after 3,639 applications were approved and Hillingdon at £14,985,000 after 4,339 applications were given approval.
Keith Prince, City Hall Conservatives Transport spokesman and Havering and Redbridge assembly member, pointed out that there were more application rejections or those in limbo than approvals.
He said: “The latest figures suggesting most applications are rejected is very concerning. These numbers represent the lives and livelihoods of thousands of people who are not only out of pocket but are also without a ULEZ-compliant vehicle forcing them to pay every time they drive in London."
Christina Calderato, TfL’s director of strategy and policy said: “It’s great to see that so many individuals, charities and businesses across the capital have been supported by the vehicle scrappage fund over the last year, enabling them to switch to cleaner and greener travel, taking advantage of the bus and tram pass and other ULEZ offers, as well as replace or retrofit their older, more polluting vehicles.
“Applications are being processed in a matter of days, and I would urge anyone who owns a non-compliant vehicle to apply to the scheme.”
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