Evening Seminar on Air Quality and the Government s NO 2 strategy In support of World Environmental Health Day 26 September 2017
Running Order Welcome and Introductions Brief speaker presentations Open forum including questions/comments from online participants Networking
Professor Jim Longhurst Assistant Vice Chancellor for Environment and Sustainability University of the West of England, Bristol
Bridget Fox Sustainable Transport Campaigner Campaign for Better Transport
Bridget Fox Sustainable Transport Campaigner
Clean up transport s act Transport is responsible for 80% of urban NOx emissions The largest source of emissions is diesel vehicles Up to 95% of diesel vehicles on the road are currently breaking air pollution limits Cutting car miles is also vital to cut CO2
We need more than just plans. Wholly inadequate not fit for purpose Charging zones a last resort No scrappage schemes No powers to ban diesel We need a new Clean Air Act Environmental justice: the polluter pays Fewer cars not just newer cars
There s lots we can do right now
Plan for fewer, greener cars All-electric vehicles produce zero direct emissions Kerb space is at a premium, so: Use the planning system to deliver off street EV parking Partner with car clubs Car free housing, located near transport hubs Rationed and rational use of parking and road space
Workplace Parking Levy Nottingham s successful model Levy around 1 a day on each workplace parking space (first 10 places free) Over 44 million of revenue since 2012 for transport improvement Highest level of bus/tram usage per head outside of London Cut congestion, pollution and carbon emissions
Modern public transport Rail electrification and bimodal stock Euro VI diesel buses produce 95% fewer emissions than previous models Latest diesel cars produce 10 times more NOx emissions per passenger than diesel buses Bus retrofitting - 12 per kg NOx saved Diesel car scrappage - 175 per kg NOx saved Every 3 buses replace around 200 cars on road
Smarter freight HGV road journeys produce up to 15 times more Nox than the equivalent freight by rail Daventry Intermodal Rail Freight Terminal has removed 64 million miles of lorry journeys from UK roads in the last year alone Consumer collection at rail stations Smarter last mile deliveries with shared low emission vehicles
Roger Geffen Policy Director Cycling UK
Cycling and Air Quality Problem or solution? Roger Geffen Policy Director Cycling UK
About Cycling UK Founded 1878, c64,000 members Cycling activities, membership services (legal, insurance, magazine) Campaigning nationally and locally Cycling development e.g. cycle training, projects for underrepresented / disadvantaged groups
Need to address synergies Source: An analysis of urban transport: Cabinet Office Strategy Unit, 2009 Economic costs of urban congestion, road casualties, air pollution and physical inactivity in England are of similar magnitude: c 10bn each (2009 estimate). So don t treat these as 4 separate problems. Tackle all four together: fewer cars, not just greener cars.
Cycling: problem or solution? Health benefits of cycling far outweigh both injury and pollution risks. Cyclists probably breathe in less pollution than vehicle occupants (though it may depend on cycling speed => breathing rates, as well as traffic volumes). To reduce pollution risks, priority should be to reallocate roadspace and reduce motor traffic, rather than guiding cyclists to less direct (i.e. less beneficial) routes. (N.B. NICE s guidance on this wasn t helpful!)
Cycle lanes: problem or solution? A typical road traffic lane can carry 2,000 cars/hr or 14,000 bicycles/hr. London s Cycle Superhighways already have higher people flows than they were capable of before introduction of cycle lanes. Cannot discount short-term localised increases in motor vehicle congestion. But overall, cycle lanes enable more people to travel with fewer motor vehicles => less congestion across whole road network over time (n.b. it s the opposite of what happens when you build a bypass). Cycle use on existing cycle facilities will continue to grow as network becomes more comprehensive.
Proposals for Government s Air Quality Strategy The Government s Air Quality Strategy should: Support / enable LAs to introduce charging CAZs (not put barriers in the way). Require CAZs to incorporate: Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plans (LCWIPs i.e. draw up network plans and a prioritised scheme programme); and the principle of Cycle-Proofing (consider cycling in all highway and traffic managent schemes, new developments and even planned highway maintenance works). Include a national scrappage scheme, funded by a short-term increase in VED (n.b. this would effectively raise funds from the manufacturers of the dirtiest cars, while deterring their production), with the thresholds both for VED and scrappage scheme eligibility shifting over time. Support the uptake of e-bikes (i.e. OLEV should support all low-emissions vehicles, not just those with 4+ wheels) and public hire-bikes. Be backed by shift of overall transport funding from national roads programme to local transport and with funding source shifting to motor vehicle use, not ownership. (Otherwise, electrifying the vehicle fleet will leave HMT with a 9-23bn black hole by 2030 Policy Exchange, Driving Down Emissions )
Cycling and Air Quality Problem or solution? Roger Geffen Policy Director Cycling UK
Matt Clark Environmental Protection team Shropshire Council
The UK plan for tackling roadside nitrogen dioxide concentrations a local authority perspective Matt Clark matthew.clark@shropshire.gov.uk
The warm up to the final plan Local Air Quality Management Regime LAs have a duty to review and assess and make plans where necessary 2010: COMEAP report 29,000 annual deaths attributed to PM2.5s 2015: client earth vindicated in Supreme Court decision stating a need for immediate action to address this issue 2016: Every Breath We Take - 40,000 attributable deaths form air pollution
Perceived positives of the plan Recognition of the need for strong national leadership Acceptance that road vehicles are the biggest contributor Lessons learnt: recognises links between NO 2 and carbon agenda Years of poor planning and court action = air pollution in public consciousness
Perceived negatives of the plan Is NO 2 a local concern for local action or national issue with local manifestation? Funding focus: Highways England - 100 million LA - 11 million Individual LA actions may be uncoordinated and inconsistent CAZs impact on surrounding area, many different types available Taxi licensing Deregulation Act 2015 Lack of detail, focus on planning and feasibility rather than action No strategic infrastructure provision for alternative fuels Missing links to other agendas PMs (although expected 2018) and sustainability
Is NO 2 being considered a priority? UK plan to see conventionally fuels car sales ended by 2040 India plan for 2030 Planning regime fit for future properties?
Open Forum