The Mayor is working hard to improve the capital's air through his new Air Quality Strategy 'Clearing the air'. Find out how.
Clearing London's air
What are we doing to improve London's air quality?
In the last decade, a number of measures have been taken to improve London’s air quality including:
- Adapting buses to make them cleaner.
- Implementing a taxi emissions strategy.
- Introducing the world’s first citywide Low Emission Zone.
- Initiatives to encourage cycling and walking.
- Smoothing traffic flow to reduce fumes.
- Promoting zero-emitting electric vehicles.
Despite this, pollution is still affecting Londoners’ health and quality of life. This is why in December 2010, the Mayor published an Air Quality Strategy to cut emissions from London’s transport network, homes and workplaces, by:
- Introducing age limits for taxis and private hire vehicles.
- Including heavier vans and minibuses in the Low Emission Zone.
- Introducing a new standard for nitrogen dioxide in the LEZ.
- Fitting older buses with equipment to curb pollution.
- Introducing dust suppressant machines to remove dust from roads, in the first trial of its kind in the UK.
- Making construction and demolition sites cleaner to improve local air pollution.
- Using the planning system to reduce emissions from new developments.
- Fitting energy efficiency appliances in homes and workplaces.
These measures will significantly improve air quality in London – but the government needs to play its part by providing more funding for the Mayor to implement his strategy. The Mayor cannot solve the problem on his own.
Many of the sources of pollution in London are beyond the Mayor’s control. That is we are working with government on a joint plan to improve air quality in London that would include national measures such as tax incentives for cleaner vehicles, funding for low-emission technology, grants for vehicle retrofit and scrappage and rail electrification.
Read Environment Advisor Martin Powell's blog on air quality
