Surrey County Council Stands Firm on No Ulez Signs Despite £15m Fines
Surrey County Council has refused to allow Ulez signs and cameras despite more than £15m in fines issued to residents. Transport lead Matt Furniss says the Mayor of London has not delivered promised support. Transport for London says the fine income funds public transport.
Surrey County Council stands by its refusal to allow Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez) signs and cameras, even though more than £15m in fines has been issued to Surrey residents, according to figures published this week.
The council opposed the expansion of the Ulez into the outer London suburbs in 2023 and declined to install signage. Its position has not changed.
Fines peaked in 2024
Tens of thousands of Surrey drivers have received penalty charge notices every year since the Ulez started in London in 2019. The peak came in 2024, with 76,305 fines, according to Transport for London (TfL) figures obtained through a freedom of information request.
About 69% of appeals from Surrey residents since 2019 have been accepted, and those fines were then cancelled, the data shows.
Council cites missing support
Matt Furniss, Surrey County Council's transport lead, said the stance stays because the Mayor of London and TfL have not put in place the help Surrey had asked for. "This situation remains unchanged as sadly none of the mitigation measures put forward to support Surrey residents have been put in place by the Mayor of London or Transport for London (TfL)," he said.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan offered a scrappage scheme to replace older, non-compliant cars to London residents. It was not extended to people in the home counties who commute into the capital by car, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
Furniss said: "We continue to urge the mayor and TfL to do what is right and extend the scrappage scheme outside of London for those that are impacted, provide exemption for key workers, and provide more and better bus routes between Surrey and London."
TfL's response
TfL said people outside London were benefiting from cleaner air. It added that money from fines was being used to improve its public transport network, which stretches into Surrey.
The agency said it worked with bordering counties before the expansion and relied on their cooperation to put up signs on the approach to the zone. A spokesperson said there is "extensive signage on the boundary itself".
The spokesperson added that TfL ran a multi-channel campaign aimed at Londoners and home counties drivers, including radio ads, ahead of the expansion. TfL also said it welcomed their views on its consultation.
