Driving to the airport can mean more than fuel and parking. London's Ultra Low Emission Zone covers Heathrow, Bristol and Birmingham charge older cars to enter their centres, Scotland's cities fine non-compliant cars, and some routes cross tolled bridges and roads. Most of these charges are easy to avoid or pay once you know about them, and expensive if you miss them. This guide sets out which charges you might meet on the way to a UK airport, who pays, and how to check your car before you go.
Start by checking your car
Most of these schemes go by your car's emissions, not its age. The quickest check is by registration number:
- London: TfL's vehicle checker tells you whether your car meets the ULEZ standards.
- England's clean air zones: the government's clean air zone checker at gov.uk covers Bath, Birmingham, Bradford, Bristol, Portsmouth, Sheffield and Tyneside.
- Scotland's low emission zones: each city's council links to the Scottish checker.
As a rough guide from TfL, petrol cars registered after 2005 and diesel cars registered new after September 2015 usually meet the standard, but check rather than assume. Electric cars are not charged in any of these zones.
London: the ULEZ and the Congestion Charge
The Ultra Low Emission Zone covers every London borough, around the clock, every day except Christmas Day. A car that does not meet the standard pays £12.50 for each day it is driven in the zone. The M25 itself is not included.
- Heathrow is inside the ULEZ. You pay for the days you drive in and out, not for the days the car is parked. With Meet & Greet, the charge can also apply when the operator moves the car between its car park and the terminal, so ask if your car does not comply. Our Heathrow guide has the details.
- Gatwick, Stansted, Luton and Southend are outside London, so reaching them on the M25 and the motorways beyond does not enter the ULEZ. Driving across London to get there does.
The Congestion Charge covers central London only: £18 a day if you pay on the day or in advance, or £21 if you pay by midnight on the third day after. It applies from 7am to 6pm on weekdays and from noon to 6pm at weekends and on bank holidays, and not between Christmas Day and the New Year's Day bank holiday. No airport is inside it, so it only matters if your route goes through the centre.
Birmingham and Bristol
Outside London, these are the only two English clean air zones that charge private cars. The zones in Bath, Bradford, Portsmouth, Sheffield and Tyneside do not charge private cars.
- Birmingham: £8 a day for a car that does not meet the standard, for driving inside the A4540 Middleway ring road. The ring road itself is not in the zone. Birmingham Airport is well outside it, and the route from the M42 and A45 does not go near it. Pay up to six days before, on the day, or up to six days after; miss it and a £120 penalty follows, reduced to £60 if paid within 14 days. See our Birmingham guide.
- Bristol: £9 a day for a car that does not meet the standard, around the clock, every day of the year. A trip that crosses midnight counts as two days. The payment window and penalties are the same as Birmingham's. Bristol Airport is outside the zone, but the airport's own directions from the M5 at junction 18, and from South Wales, go through central Bristol. Coming from the south via junction 22 and the A38 avoids it. See our Bristol guide.
Scotland's low emission zones
Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Dundee all have low emission zones, and they work differently from England's. There is no daily charge: a car that does not meet the standard simply should not enter, and if it does, a penalty is issued. The first is £60, halved if paid within 14 days, and each further offence within 90 days doubles it, up to £480. Blue Badge holders are exempt.
All four zones cover the city centres, not the airports:
- Glasgow: the M8 is not part of the zone, so the motorway route to Glasgow Airport does not enter it. See our Glasgow guide.
- Edinburgh: the zone is a loop around the city centre, well away from the airport on the A8. See our Edinburgh guide.
- Aberdeen: the zone covers part of the city centre, away from the airport at Dyce. See our Aberdeen guide.
Tolls on the way
- The Dartford Crossing, on the M25 east of London, costs £3.50 for a car, or £2.80 with a pre-pay account, between 6am and 10pm every day. There are no barriers: pay online by midnight the day after you cross, or a penalty notice may follow. It matters if you drive round the east of London, for example to Gatwick from Essex, or to Stansted or Southend from Kent. See our Gatwick and Stansted guides.
- The M6 Toll, north of Birmingham, is an optional, tolled alternative to the M6.
- The Humber Bridge is tolled, which matters if you drive to Humberside Airport from Hull and the north bank. See our Humberside guide.
- The Mersey Gateway and Silver Jubilee bridges at Runcorn are tolled, and the airport's route from the south uses the Runcorn crossing. See our Liverpool guide.
- The Severn bridges are free. Tolls on both were scrapped in December 2018, so there is nothing to pay driving between South Wales and Bristol.
Toll prices change, so check the current price on each operator's website before you travel.
Charges and parking
Emission charges are for driving, not parking. If you park off the airport and take a shuttle, you only pay for the days you drive in the zone, if at all. If you are worried about a zone on your route, a car park outside it with a shuttle, or a route that goes round it, avoids the question. Compare parking at your airport and check the route from your home to the car park, not just to the terminal.
For the rest of what to sort before a trip, see the Before You Fly checklist.
Frequently asked questions
Is Heathrow in the ULEZ?
Yes. The ULEZ covers every London borough, including Heathrow. A car that does not meet the standard pays £12.50 for each day it is driven in the zone, but not for the days it is parked.
Do I have to pay the ULEZ to drive to Gatwick, Stansted or Luton?
Not if you stay on the M25 and the motorways beyond it, because they are outside the zone. Driving across London to reach them does take you into the ULEZ.
Which clean air zones charge private cars?
In England, London's ULEZ, Birmingham (£8 a day) and Bristol (£9 a day). Bath, Bradford, Portsmouth, Sheffield and Tyneside do not charge private cars. Scotland's zones in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Dundee issue penalties instead of a daily charge.
How much is the Dartford Crossing?
£3.50 for a car, or £2.80 with a pre-pay account, between 6am and 10pm. Pay online by midnight the day after you cross.
Do I pay a clean air zone charge while my car is parked?
No. The charges are for driving in the zone. A car that sits in a car park inside a zone is not charged for those days.
Sorted before you fly.
