The Clean Air Zone plans have sparked a huge outcry with the scheme getting a particularly thorny reception from people who rely on Greater Manchester's road network for their businesses.
The camera-controlled zone will see coaches, buses, vans, HGVs, taxis and private hire vehicles that fail to meet emission standards pay a daily charge to drive on roads in the region.
HGVs, buses and coaches would need to pay £60 a day, taxis and private hire vehicles paying £7.50 and vans £10 a day from 2023. Failure to pay the charge would also result in a £120 fine.
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The £150 million plans have caused outrage among many, with some saying small businesses will take a hit and that the charge will 'cripple normal hardworking people.'
Callers into BBC Radio Manchester also voiced their objections to Mayor Andy Burnham on Thursday morning, who promised to discuss the plans with council leaders but said that 'we can't stop it.'
Responsibility has been placed on local authorities to help develop plans to tackle levels of pollution caused by vehicles, with the government's policies being deemed insufficient.
The Clean Air Zone plans aim to tackle a range of air pollutants which contribute to more than 1,200 premature deaths a year in Greater Manchester, and are a leading cause of asthma, heart disease and Alzhiemer's.
Greater Manchester councils have also advised that they have been legally mandated to introduce the scheme to achieve compliance by 2024.
Grants will be available to people to help make their vehicles compliant with emission standards and therefore avoid the daily charges, but people have claimed that they will still have to cover the cost of replacing or retrofitting the vehicles themselves.
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