London to introduce pollution tax

London authorities will soon charge owners of the most polluting cars almost $35 a day to enter the city's 'congestion zone', it has been announced.

The new 'pollution charge', or 'T-Charge', has been introduced by London mayor Sadiq Khan, and will come into effect from this October.

Khan says the reason for the new T-Charge, ehich is set to apply Monday to Friday between the hours of 7:00am and 6:00pm, is to dramatically cut pollution for residents and workers in the capital.

London authorities have specifically targeted cars that were registered before 2006 or do not meet Euro 4 emission regulations.

Currently, vehicles entering the city centre's 'Congestion Zone' are already required to pay £11.50 ($A19) per day but, from October, drivers of older vehicles will be forced to pay the new T-Charge that increases the total fee to £21.50 ($A35).

London, like many other European capitals, has consistently failed to meet mandatory EU limits for air quality.

According to the British university, King's College London, more than 9500 Londoners die prematurely each year because of exposure to air pollution.

The new T-Charge is thought to affect more than 10,000 vehicles that drive into the city every day.

Commenting on introducing the new T-Charge, Kahn said: "It's staggering how we live in a city where the air is so toxic that many of our children are growing up with lung problems. If we don't make drastic changes now we won't be protecting the health of our families in the future".

As well as the new T-Charge, the London mayor is also now proposing introducing an Ultra-Low Emissions Zone a year earlier than planned in 2019. This would see all vehicles -- including vans, trucks and buses which fail to meet even stricter emissions criteria -- charged £12.50 ($A20) per day.

As well as extending the zone, the mayor is also considering a diesel scrappage scheme.

And on top of paying more to enter London, some of the city's councils are also charging British drivers more to park if you drive a polluting vehicle.

Recently motoring.com.au reported that Westminster council would charge diesel car owners and extra $4 per hour on top of the standard charge of $8 per hour.

Other London boroughs are considering introducing similar parking rates for diesels.