Nearly 80,000 motorists in Kent have been slapped with £80 fines for driving into London's ultra-low emission zone (ULEZ) since its latest expansion.

Transport for London (TfL) is estimated to have gobbled up at least £6 million from the coffers of those shifting gears between the county and the capital in non-conpliant vehicles.

The £12.50 ULEZ charge for the most polluting motors has operated since April 2019, covering the same area of central London as the Congestion Charge.

Failure to comply with the rules means drivers are hit with a £160 fine, reduced to £80 if paid within 14 days.

From October 25 last year, the zone was expanded to cover the area within the North and South Circular roads.

Since then a total of 78,116 penalty charge notices (PCNs) have been dished out to drivers with vehicles registered in Kent, a KentOnline Freedom of Information (FOI) request has revealed.

By area, Medway motorists were most frequently stung with 16,689 fines amassed, followed closely by Dartford (10,320) and Gravesham (7,602).

The parts of Kent which saw the fewest number of PCNs issued were perhaps unsurprisingly in the east of the county – Dover (2,428) and Folkestone & Hythe (2,489).

But thousands of unsuspecting motorists living on the coast are among those to have found themselves fall foul of the rules.

John Lightfoot, 68, from Beltinge, near Herne Bay, made the 60-mile journey to the 02 in Greenwich on September 7 to watch an ABBA show as an anniversary treat with his partner.

But the pensioner was unaware his vehicle, a 2010 plate diesel BMW with less than 2,000 miles on the clock, was liable for the charge because its emissions exceed TfL’s rules.

He was gobsmacked when a letter arrived in the post two weeks later informing him he had been stung for £80 on top of the £52.50 he had forked out for petrol and parking.

"It came through and I thought it must be a speed ticket," John explained. "I never knew about it. I knew about the congestion charge but not that ULEZ.

"If I knew going to London was going to cost me £80 I wouldn't have bothered."

John said he saw some signs about the expansion but it didn't make clear whether it meant the upcoming plans or the existing rules.

He added: "I get £150 a week on my pension, it is outrageous. If you take that out of it I would have only have £70 left.

"I think its wrong and they don't give you any chance to appeal."

He believes the fine is too steep and there should be a cooling off or respite period for first time non-compliance.

John added: "It is rubbish and you don't get the chance to do anything about it. It is getting to the stage where you can't do anything."

'It is getting to the stage where you can't do anything...'

TfL says as the scheme was new between April 8 and May 10, 2019, it issued warning notices rather than PCNs.

The scheme was suspended from March 23 to May 17, 2020, in response to the pandemic.

And again to ensure motorists were fully aware that the scheme had been reinstated, between May 18 and 29, 2020, it only issued warning notices rather than PCNs.

The same respite period was granted again when the scheme was expanded last October.

A TfL spokesman said: "On October 25, 2021, the ULEZ was expanded to cover the area up to but not including the North and South circular roads.

"As the expansion was new between then and November 22, 2021, we issued warning notices rather than PCNs."

The transport authority for London further explained the process by which it issues PCNs.

"When we issue a PCN it is sent to the registered keeper of the vehicle as held by the DVLA," they added.

"Therefore the address to which the penalty is issued does not necessarily indicate that the driver resides at that address.

"The most common instance of this is when a vehicle is on hire and the penalty is issued to the hire company rather than the driver."

Plans for ULEZ were draw up during Boris Johnson's tensure as London Mayor and rolled out by his successor Sadiq Khan in April 2019.

Mr Khan says he is waging “war on poisonous air” and tackling toxic fumes in and around the capital through the scheme.

According to reports from the Mayor's office it initially caused the number of the worst polluting vehicles to drop from 35,600 to 23,000 and a 20% reduction in emissions in the capital in the four months since it was introduced.

The additional expansion saw the number of non-compliant vehicles plummet from 127,000 to 80,000 on weekdays, it is claimed.

There are plans to expand the ULEZ zone further from August 2023 to cover the whole of Greater London.

If approved it would sit along the border with Kent, next to towns including Dartford, Sevenoaks and Swanley and maximum fines would increase from £160 to £180.

Residents in Dartford and its MP have previously spoken out against the plans, labelling it a "money grab" and a "tax on the poor" to aid the cash-strapped TfL.

Criticism was also levelled at the absence of a suitable scrappage scheme for non-compliant vehicles which wouldn't accommodate motorists registered to owners outside the M25 orbital.

The Conservatives have also called on the mayor to axe plans to extend the zone to take account of the ongoing energy pressures and cost-of-living crisis.

Last week, Mr Khan hinted he might delay the plans.

It follows criticism of this summer's consultation process and documents leaked to the Telegraph which suggested only around one in three respondents said ULEZ expansion should go ahead.

Outright opposition fell to around 60% with a further 7.6% wanting introduction of a levy to be delayed until “later”.

But the mayor has insisted he wouldn't "pre-judge" the issue and will make a final decision once he has received a report from TfL expected by Christmas.