Greater Manchester coaches to get CAZ funding

Funding is to be made available to Greater Manchester-registered coaches to help operators upgrade for the region’s Clean Air Zone (CAZ).

Greater Manchester has secured over £120m in government funding to support local businesses upgrade to cleaner, compliant vehicles. Coach operators in the area are now eligible for £32,000 towards the replacement of a vehicle.

Greater Manchester-registered coaches are exempt from daily charges in the CAZ until 2023.

National government provided a funding award of £14.7m to retrofit buses running services in Greater Manchester that have older engines and do not meet the CAZ’s emission standard. Around 18 operators have so far submitted applications for retrofit funding of 750 buses, worth nearly £12m. The retrofitting has now started, with seven operators now installing the equipment.

The support package will help sole traders and the voluntary sector to upgrade non-compliant commercial vehicles and avoid a daily charge with the funding available from November. This includes the Bus Retrofit Fund for £14.7 million to retrofit non-compliant buses running services in Greater Manchester and the Bus Replacement Fund, which will see £3.2 million to support replacement of non-compliant buses that cannot be retrofitted.

Following a consultation, the CAZ boundary has minimal changes and will cover the whole of Greater Manchester, excluding the strategic Road Network (SRN) which is managed by Highways England. However, sections of the A628/A57 on the SRN that pass through the villages of Hollingworth and Mottram will be covered by the Zone.

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