Glasgow’s taxi drivers could soon be forced off the streets after one of the only companies permitted to make LEZ-compliant upgrades unexpectedly ceased trading.

Under the terms of the LEZ scheme, taxi drivers must ensure they meet the Euro 4 emissions standard for petrol vehicles or the Euro 6 emissions standard for diesel and electric vehicles.

Operators were originally told that compliance must be met by June 2023, but a number of subsequent exemptions have been granted by Glasgow City Council, says The Herald.

Operators were originally told that compliance must be met by June 2023, but a number of subsequent exemptions have been granted by Glasgow City Council.

According to the local authority, 225 operators are currently driving under an exemption, which The Herald understands is due to expire in October. 

However, a number of drivers have been left unable to make the necessary changes to their vehicles. Drivers like Brian Connor, a fifty year veteran of the trade, received a grant from the Energy Saving Trust (funded by Transport Scotland) to retrofit their non-compliant vehicles earlier this year. Using the “repowering” method, the vehicle’s diesel engine is replaced by a new liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) or petrol engine.

The company employed to carry out the upgrades, Vehicle Repowering Services (VRS), went into liquidation in late July, despite having a “waiting list for conversions.”

According to Transport Scotland, 26 taxi operators had “outstanding grant offers” associated with the company. It is unclear if other drivers had also engaged the company to retrofit their vehicles outside the parameters of the grant scheme.