{"id":1999391,"date":"2023-08-13T15:04:02","date_gmt":"2023-08-13T19:04:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/blade-runners-fight-londons-car-emission-monitoring-cameras\/"},"modified":"2023-08-13T15:07:00","modified_gmt":"2023-08-13T19:07:00","slug":"blade-runners-fight-londons-car-emission-monitoring-cameras","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/blade-runners-fight-londons-car-emission-monitoring-cameras\/","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;Blade Runners&#8217; Battle London&#8217;s Car Emission Cameras"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">14<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fblade-runners-fight-londons-car-emission-monitoring-cameras%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1999391&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>Resistance Scrappers \u2063Take on London&#8217;s Controversial Vehicle\u200b Tax\u200b Program<\/h2>\n<p>Resistance scrappers dubbed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thedrive.com\/news\/vandals-destroy-london-car-emissions-cameras-over-daily-tolls\">\u201cBlade Runners\u201d<\/a> have\u2063 been wreaking\u2064 havoc on surveillance cameras in \u2062London. These cameras are meant \u2064to enforce the city&#8217;s controversial program to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/blade-runners-fight-londons-car-emission-monitoring-cameras\/\" title=\"'Blade Runners' Battle London's Car Emission Cameras\">tax high-polluting motor vehicles<\/a>, which is set to expand its boundaries in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n<p>Various media reports\u2062 and videos\u2062 posted to social \u200bmedia detail how\u2062 this band of rebels has been climbing \u2062up polls to\u200b dismantle and swipe\u200b parts from the cameras that help\u2063 track non-compliant \u200ddrivers. These drivers face fines of \u00a312.50\u2062 (about $15.87\u200b in the United\u2062 States) a day to enter the <a href=\"https:\/\/tfl.gov.uk\/modes\/driving\/ultra-low-emission-zone#:~:text=If%20your%20vehicle%20doesn't,to%20and%20including%205%20tonnes)\">Ultra Low Emission\u200b Zone (ULEZ)<\/a> in the heart\u200b of the British capital.<\/p>\n<p>One activist, clad in a \u2064balaclava to hide his identity, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/article-12011507\/ULEZ-Blade-Runners-want-one-Sadiq-Khans-low-emission-cameras.html\">told the Daily Mail<\/a> in the spring that he had personally stolen \u206434 Automatic\u2064 Number Plate Recognition\u200c (ANPR) cameras. He surmised that Blade Runners had damaged hundreds\u2064 of the \u200cdevices by that time.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">UK citizens are\u2063 furious Sadiq \u2063Khan is \u2064installing ULEZ (Ultra low emission zones) recognition cameras throughout\u200d London. Those who can\u2019t <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/exclusive-kevin-mccarthy-biden-white-house-likes-high-gas-prices-whole-plan-all-about-green-new-deal\/\" title=\"Exclusive \u2014 Kevin McCarthy: Biden White House Likes High Gas Prices, \u2018Whole Plan All About Green New Deal\u2019\">afford electric vehicles<\/a> will be fined \u00a312 pounds \u200d($15) every time they \u200ddrive \u2064past them.<\/p>\n<p>Citizens are\u200d fighting back by taking them down as soon\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/8AsvWYPbfA\">pic.twitter.com\/8AsvWYPbfA<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Pelham (@Resist_05) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Resist_05\/status\/1690569862836527104?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">August 13, 2023<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u201cEverything\u200b we are doing is for our own freedoms,\u201d this Blade Runner, \u2064identified only \u200das a father \u200din his \u200bmid-40s, told the news outlet. \u201cIt\u2019s the \u2063tip of the iceberg. We do not live in a democracy,\u201d this person said, adding, \u201cWe will fight with everything\u2064 we have for our freedoms.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Despite the pushback to ULEZ, London \u2063Mayor Sadiq Khan is\u2063 spearheading\u200b an expansion\u2062 of the program to cover all of the city\u2019s boroughs. The expansion is set to take \u2063effect\u200d on August 29 after the High Court ruled it lawful in the face of a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/uk-news\/2023\/jul\/28\/london-ulez-court-dismisses-challenge-by-five-councils-over-expansion\">legal challenge<\/a> by five Conservative-led councils.<\/p>\n<p>The ruling allowed\u200b London to \u201cpress on\u200d with \u2064the\u2063 difficult\u200d but vital task of cleaning up \u200bLondon\u2019s\u200b air and tackling the climate crisis,\u201d Khan <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MayorofLondon\/status\/1684855360354426881\">said<\/a> in a statement. The government is \u2064also\u00a0funding a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.london.gov.uk\/media-centre\/mayors-press-release\/MAYOR-ANNOUNCES-SCRAPPAGE-EXPANSION\">\u201cscrappage \u2063scheme\u201d<\/a> to provide financial\u200b assistance to local residents who get \u2062rid of non-compliant vehicles.<\/p>\n<p>Still, as\u200d some raise concerns about a growing ULEZ zone in\u200d London\u200c <a href=\"https:\/\/www.builders.org.uk\/ulez-expansion-will-hurt-trades-the-most\/\">harming businesses<\/a> \u2062and \u200d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/news\/2023\/07\/12\/third-london-businesses-ulez-expansion-negative-employees\/\">workers<\/a>, acts of defiance have continued. Authorities\u2063 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.standard.co.uk\/news\/london\/ulez-expansion-cameras-stolen-vandalised-london-met-police-b1098157.html\">conceded<\/a> that dozens\u2063 of cameras \u2064were being vandalized weekly in the \u200bweeks preceding the planned \u200cexpansion. Cameras being set up in new areas have had their wires \u2063cut off and lenses painted over in\u200d black, The New York Times <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/06\/24\/climate\/london-ulez-air-pollution.html\">reported<\/a> in June.<\/p>\n<p>In \u2063response,\u00a0Scotland Yard began \u201cOperation Eremon\u201d to investigate the activity, \u2064 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.itv.com\/news\/london\/2023-07-31\/shadowy-blade-runner-vandals-trash-cameras-in-anti-ulez-backlash\">according to ITV News London<\/a>. \u201cWe\u200b are continuing to proactively target anyone we suspect of causing \u200dor seeking to \u200ccause damage to these cameras,\u201d \u2064said Detective Superintendent Daniel\u2064 Smith, per the report. \u201cWe are now \u2063reviewing this \u2063<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/utah-education-board-member-under-investigation-after-social-media-posts-about-schools-brainwashing-children\/\" title=\"Utah Education Board Member probed for criticizing schools' influence on children.\">social \u200cmedia post<\/a> and will follow up every line of investigation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There have been reports of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.standard.co.uk\/news\/crime\/ulez-camera-damage-sidcup-court-charged-nicholls-sadiq-khan-expansion-b1098151.html\">charges<\/a> against at \u200cleast one individual over \u200dthe alleged criminal damage \u2062of ULEZ \u200bcameras.<\/p>\n<p><b data-stringify-type=\"bold\"><\/b><\/p>\n<p>As \u2064officials increasingly \u200draise concerns about global warming and air pollution, low-emission zones \u200chave spread to cities across Europe, leading to measures geared toward \u2062getting \u200b <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/environment\/2022\/jul\/20\/old-cars-forced-off-road-as-europes-clean-air-zones-nearly-double\">older cars \u200coff \u2063the\u200c roads<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In London, most vehicles observed in and around the city on an average day are already compliant with ULEZ, according\u2063 to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.london.gov.uk\/programmes-strategies\/environment-and-climate-change\/pollution-and-air-quality\/ultra-low-emission-zone-ulez-london\/ulez-frequently-asked-questions\/how-many-londoners-will-be-affected-ulez-expansion\">government\u2019s website<\/a>. It also says that \u201call petrol\u2062 cars \u200band\u200c vans registered new from 2006, and diesel cars\u200c and vans from 2016,\u2064 will \u2062meet the\u2062 ULEZ standards.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The local government\u2062 <a href=\"https:\/\/tfl.gov.uk\/modes\/driving\/ultra-low-emission-zone\/ulez-expansion\">insists<\/a> harmful\u2063 nitrogen dioxide\u200c pollution has been reduced by\u200c nearly half in central\u2064 London\u200d thanks to\u200c ULEZ, which was first\u200d announced\u2062 in 2017 and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/uk-england-london-47815117\">began in 2019<\/a>, and claims the expansion will bring \u201cclean air\u201d \u200cto 5 million more people.<\/p>\n<p>Susan Hall, a Conservative candidate for\u200c mayor for\u2063 the election set\u2062 to take place\u200b next year, \u200bhas vowed to undo the ULEZ expansion, \u2063 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2023-07-19\/tories-pick-hall-to-face-labour-s-khan-in-london-mayoral-vote\">according to Bloomberg<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Resistance scrappers, known as &#8220;Blade Runners,&#8221; are sabotaging surveillance cameras enforcing London&#8217;s expanding high-pollution vehicle tax program. Media reports and social media videos show these rebels scaling poles to dismantle and steal the cameras.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1588,"featured_media":1999392,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[541],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1999391","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-daily-wire"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1999391","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1588"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1999391"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1999391\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1999392"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1999391"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1999391"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1999391"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}