The theme park is within Ulez because it is within Greater London, but only non-compliant vehicles will be charged (Gareth Fuller/PA)

Chessington is covered by London’s Ulez because it is within a London borough

By Ben Hatton, PA Political Staff
19:51 - September 19, 2023

Claims have been made on social media that Mayor of London Sadiq Khan extended the ultra low emission zone (Ulez) specifically to include the Chessington World of Adventures Resort so that every car that goes to the popular theme park will have to pay a £12.50 charge.

Evaluation: False

Following its expansion on August 29 2023, Ulez now covers the same area as the low emission zone (Lez) boundary, which was implemented in 2008, and which deliberately and closely resembles the Greater London boundary. Chessington has been part of Greater London for decades, and so while it is now covered by Ulez, no special extension beyond the new London-wide boundary was required for the theme park to be included, and only non-compliant vehicles will be charged the daily rate of £12.50.

The facts

The London boundary and Ulez

Although historically part of Surrey, Chessington and the area covering what is now the theme park became part of the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, a London borough and therefore part of the Greater London administrative area, in 1965.

A map posted on the Transport for London website of the expanded Ulez zone in Chessington
A map posted on the Transport for London website of the expanded Ulez zone in Chessington (TfL/PA)

The Greater London Authority (GLA), which is responsible for Ulez, is the top tier of local government for the area.

Mr Khan, as Mayor of London and head of the GLA, implemented the Ulez extension  effective from August 29 and operating “London-wide across all London boroughs, up to the current Low Emission Zone (LEZ) boundary”, and so mirroring very closely the GLA boundary which includes Chessington.

The primary justification given by the mayor for expanding Ulez was to “tackle the triple threats of air pollution, the climate emergency and congestion”.

Lez was introduced in 2008 under then-London mayor Ken Livingstone, but cars were exempted.

While the extended Ulez boundary and GLA area are very similar, the two are not identical, with some small areas and through-roads exempted from Ulez,  and there are opportunities for drivers to divert away from the zone.

Transport for London (TfL) – an executive agency of the GLA – says: “In most cases the boundary is as close as possible to the edge of the Greater London Authority area. For road safety reasons there are a few exceptions to this rule.”

A map showing the Ulez around Chessington World of Adventures

The area around the theme park appears on a Ulez map as a small island because a section of the A3, part of the of Kingston Bypass which connects two areas outside of the zone on either side of Chessington, is exempted. There are similar examples where parts of Ulez appear disconnected from the  centre by exempted roads, including around part of Buckhurst Hill in north London.

When does the charge apply?

While it is true that Chessington World of Adventures Resort, which opened as a theme park in 1987, is within Ulez, only non-compliant vehicles need to pay the £12.50 daily charge, and there are some exemptions and grace periods.

Petrol cars that meet Ulez standards are generally those first registered as new with the DVLA after 2005, according to TfL, and for diesel, cars must meet standards generally seen in those first registered with the DVLA as new after September 2015. Drivers can see whether they need to pay the charge by checking on the TfL website and entering their number plate.

What does Sadiq Khan say?

The Mayor of London’s office told the PA news agency: “Chessington World of Adventures is in the London-wide zone because it sits within the Greater London boundary.

“The mayor has been clear that the decision to expand the ultra low emission zone London-wide was not an easy one, but necessary to tackle toxic air pollution and the climate crisis.

“Around 4,000 Londoners die prematurely each year due to air pollution, children are growing up with stunted lungs, and thousands of people in our city are developing life-changing illnesses, such as cancer, lung disease, dementia and asthma.

“Nine out of 10 cars seen driving in outer London on an average day are already Ulez-compliant and their drivers will not have to pay the charge.”

Links

The claim on X (archived)

History of the county of Surrey’s boundary (archived)

Local Government Act 1963 (archived), which outlines the new borough by reference to the previous municipal boroughs it was to be comprised of (archived)

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan announces a London-wide Ulez expansion (archived)

TfL says the extended Ulez boundary closely resembles the GLA boundary with some exceptions for road safety (archived)

The Low Emission Zone (Lez) covers the same area as the Ulez, but was interested years before, in 2008 (archived)

A map of the Ulez boundary (archived)

A history of Chessington World of Adventures Resort (archived)

TfL: Ulez discounts and exemptions (archived)

TfL search tool so drivers can check the status of their vehicle before travelling (archived)

About PA’s fact checks

If you have any suggestions for future fact checks, objections or comments, please send them to factcheck@pamediagroup.com, including any relevant links. For more information on how to submit a correction or dispute a rating, please refer to our Corrections and complaints policy

Latest fact checks