Birmingham City Council records fines and charges against its own vehicles for breaching the city’s Clean Air Zone (CAZ) rules. Multiple outlets report that the council pays itself a total of about £472,000, following the entry of non-compliant council vehicles into the CAZ since the scheme began in 2021. BBC News says one in eight vehicles in the council’s fleet still do not meet CAZ requirements.
The reports also note that many of the charged vehicles are linked to the council’s waste operations. The Independent states that the majority of vehicles charged are from the waste department, and that this occurs despite a bin strike in the city that has been ongoing since January 2025. The Independent and other coverage describe how daily charges and penalties accumulate when vehicles enter the CAZ without meeting the required standards.
All accounts describe the same core point: the authority is subject to its own CAZ policy in practice, and internal records show substantial charges over multiple years.
