At a glance
- £8 a day for most cars, vans and taxis that don't meet the emissions standard.
- £50 a day for non-compliant HGVs, buses and coaches.
- The zone is the city centre inside the A4540 Middleway. The ring road itself is not charged.
- It runs 24 hours a day, every day of the year.
- Check your own number plate before you drive in. The official checker is the only thing that settles it.
Do I actually have to pay?
Most newer cars don't pay anything. The charge is aimed at older, more polluting engines, and it works off emissions standards rather than the badge on the car. A petrol vehicle that meets Euro 4 is compliant, and so is a diesel that meets Euro 6. As a rough rule of thumb that's most petrol cars from around 2006 and most diesels from around September 2015, but the year is only a guide, not the rule.
Don't trust the rule of thumb on a borrowed or newly bought car. Put the registration into the government checker above. It tells you in one screen whether that exact vehicle is charged, and it is the same database the cameras use.
What it costs
| Vehicle | Daily charge if non-compliant |
|---|---|
| Cars, taxis and private hire, vans/LGVs, minibuses | £8 |
| HGVs, buses, coaches | £50 |
| Motorcycles | Not charged |
The charge is per day, not per trip. If you drive in and out three times on the same day, you pay once. The charging day runs midnight to midnight.
Is my address in the zone?
The Clean Air Zone covers the roads within the A4540 Middleway, the ring road that loops around the city centre. The Middleway itself is outside the zone: you can drive the whole way round the city on the ring road without paying, and only get charged if you turn off it into the centre. Type a postcode or street below to see whether a specific location falls inside the chargeable area.
This checks location only: whether a place sits inside the zone, not whether your particular vehicle is charged. Confirm that with the official vehicle checker. Zone boundary and map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
How and when to pay
You pay online through the government service, or by phone on 0300 029 8888. There's a generous window around the day you travel: you can pay from six days before, on the day itself, and up to six days afterwards. So if you realise on the drive home that you've clipped the zone, you still have time.
Pay the charge on gov.uk →There is no charge to pay if your vehicle is compliant, so you don't need to register or do anything.
What happens if you forget
Miss the window and you get a Penalty Charge Notice of £120. Pay it within 14 days and it drops to £60. Leave it longer and the full £120 stands, with up to 28 days before the case escalates. If you think the penalty is wrong, you can make representations to the council and, if that fails, appeal to the independent Traffic Penalty Tribunal, the same route as a parking ticket, which we cover in the parking and PCN guide.
Exemptions
A handful of vehicles are exempt outright: zero-emission cars, historic vehicles, some vehicles in a disabled tax class, and certain emergency and community transport. When the zone launched in 2021 there were also temporary exemptions for local workers and businesses, but most of those were time-limited and have now lapsed. If you think you might qualify, check the current list on the council's Brum Breathes site rather than assuming an old exemption still applies.