Bath's Clean Air Plan 2021 - Bath and North East Somerset Council

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Bath's Clean Air Plan 2021 - Bath and North East Somerset Council
Tackling air pollution in Bath and North East Somerset

Bath’s Clean Air Plan 2021
Clean air matters. According to the Royal
College of Paediatrics and Child Health, air
pollution is believed to be a contributory
factor to some 40,000 premature deaths
in the UK every year. There’s also evidence
that it can cause lung damage in babies
and children, and contribute to lung and
heart disease in older people.

The Government has told 28 Councils in England
– including ourselves – that they have to achieve
compliance with Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) limits
‘in the shortest possible time’, and by 2021 at
the latest. This is part of its National Air Quality
Action Plan, and is based on scientific evidence.      a different class of Clean Air Charging Zone
Levels above 40µg/m3 are seen as needing urgent        (CAZ) to discourage high-polluting vehicles from
attention by the Government.                           driving in the centre, and a range of non-charging
                                                       measures to encourage greener modes of travel.
In Bath, NO2 pollution caused by vehicle emissions
exceeds the accepted limits at several hotspots in     No decisions have been made at this time, and the
the city.                                              feasibility of each package is now being assessed
                                                       with ongoing public engagement. A final package
We’ve therefore assessed and drawn on more
                                                       must be agreed by the end of December 2018.
than 60 suggestions from the public to shortlist
three packages of measures that can reduce
vehicle emissions and bring about the required
improvement by 2021. Each package includes

                                     www.bathnes.gov.uk/breathe
Bath's Clean Air Plan 2021 - Bath and North East Somerset Council
BreATHe                                   Tackling air pollution in Bath and North East Somerset

Summary of shortlisted options

The Council’s specialist            The Council’s CAZ options:            • Vehicles within the disabled
advisers have put forward                                                   passenger vehicle tax class
                                    • Class B. Charges for higher-
three packages capable of             emission buses, coaches,            Please note that these dates
meeting the Government’s              private hire, taxis and heavy       are approximate. Cut-off dates
                                      goods vehicles (HGVs)               are based on the date that the
requirements. These will
                                                                          vehicle model was registered,
now be assessed further,            • Class C. Charges as per Class
                                                                          rather than the specific individual
including the potential               B, plus higher-emission light
                                                                          vehicle registration date.
                                      goods vehicles (LGVs)
impacts on residents, health                                              We’ll be engaging the public
and the economy.                    • Class D. Charges as per Class
                                                                          on issues such as including
                                      C, plus higher-emission cars
                                                                          motorbikes in a Class D CAZ,
This shortlist was drawn from       The Council does not set              and exempting emergency and
an assessment of more than          the criteria. This is a national      community transport vehicles
60 ideas to improve air quality,    standard set by the Government,       and blue badge holders. No
put forward by the public during    based on scientific evidence and      decisions on these matters will
a consultation on the city’s air    published in its Clean Air Zone       be made until assessments are
quality last year.                  Framework.                            complete.
Each package includes a different
                                    What exemptions will apply?           We aim to have a Clean Air Zone
class of Clean Air Zone for the
                                                                          in place by 2020, to bring about
centre of Bath that will charge     In line with the Government’s         the required improvements by
drivers of higher-emission          CAZ framework, the following          2021 at the latest.
vehicles entering the zone. Also    vehicles are exempt from
included in each package will       charges:                              How to check vehicle
be a range of non-charging
                                    • Euro 4 + petrol vehicles (from      compliance
measures to encourage greener
modes of travel.                      approx. 2006)                       You can check your engine
                                    • Euro 6 diesel vehicles (from        standard (i.e. Euro 4, 5, 6) using
No decisions have been made at
                                      approx. 2015)                       an online vehicle checker such as
this time, but a decision on the
                                                                          HPI, but we recommend that you
final package must be agreed by     • Fully electric and hydrogen fuel    contact your vehicle retailer or
December 2018.                        cell vehicles                       manufacturer to confirm.

 Priorities                Why this is important
 Improving air quality     • Air pollution has an adverse effect on health, particularly respiratory health
                           • We need to reduce levels of NO2 at hotspots in Bath, by 2021 at the latest
 Introducing a CAZ         • A Clean Air Charging Zone (CAZ) for central Bath is our only way of cutting
                             emissions and improving air quality by 2021
 Engaging business         • We’ll help organisations lessen the impact of a CAZ
                           • And support organisations to promote and encourage greener travel
 Engaging residents        • We’ll work with communities to encourage a shift to greener travel
 Keeping you informed      • A CAZ will affect everyone
                           • We’ll engage everyone during the decision-making process
                           • We’ll help you get ready for a CAZ with information and advice
Bath and North East Somerset Council: Clean Air Plan

                                                                                                   Proposed CAZ

What areas will be included            charging measures designed to            on parking options, travel times
in the Zone?                           encourage greener modes of               and air quality
                                       travel and lessen the impact of a      • Targeted traffic management
At this stage our specialist
                                       CAZ on residents and drivers. All        improvements or improved bus
advisers are proposing a small
                                       of these ideas will be thoroughly        priority on the A367 Wells Road
zone in central Bath. It offers
                                       assessed and discussed with
the greatest benefit in terms of                                              • Making permanent the
                                       local people. They might include:
reducing air pollution across                                                   temporary bus lane on London
the city by 2021, with the least       • Reduced cost of residents’             Road.
impact on residents and the              parking permits for low-
                                         emission vehicles                    If a Class D CAZ is chosen as
economy (when compared with
                                                                              the preferred option (which
a medium or large zone).               • Improved public transport            includes cars), then we’ll also
Assessments show that a small            facilities, such as bus priority,    look at introducing electric cycle
zone will reduce the number of           better bus stops and more real-      hire, priority parking areas for car
higher-emission vehicles coming          time information for passengers      sharing, and the expansion of the
into the city centre which, in turn,     to increase reliability and use      car club network, in addition to
will benefit air quality on nearby     • Improvements to walking              the measures above.
arterial roads. This includes            and cycling routes and better
                                                                              We’ll continue to look at other
London Road, which has some of           provision for cycle parking
                                                                              longer-term measures to improve
the highest concentrations of N02      • A review of taxi licensing policy,   air quality in Bath, such as the
in the city.                             considering how low-emission         A46/A36 link road.
                                         vehicles can be encouraged
Other measures
                                       • Improved use of variable
Alongside the charging element,          message signs with information
each package will include non-
Bath and North East Somerset Council: Clean Air Plan

                                                                     Fully assessing
                                                                         the shortlist                            Deliver agreed package
         Government directive                                   Choosing a preferred                              to improve air quality
    to reduce NO2 pollution in          Ongoing public          package of measures                               in Bath by 2021
    Bath by 2021 at the latest          engagement                End of September                                at the latest

     2017                        2018                                                                      2019

      Bath Air Quality Action                        End of March                  End of December
           Plan consultation                         Gathering data            Working up the design
      generating 60 ideas to              on vehicle emissions and           of the preferred package
       reduce NO2 pollution                       fleet composition                       of measures
                                                                                        Bid for funding
                                             Technical assessment
                                                   of the 60 ideas
                                                Creating a short list
                                              of the best packages
                                                       of measures                                         Timeline for the Clean Air Plan

What is a Clean Air                       is used to run the scheme,                           improvements in the shortest
Charging Zone?                            and any extra may be used                            possible time and by 2021 at the
                                          to support greener modes of                          latest (in line with Government
A Clean Air Charging Zone                 travel, depending on government                      requirements).
means drivers of high-emission            decisions.
vehicles are charged when                                                                      To achieve this, the Council is
entering a specific geographic                                                                 committed to talking with and
                                          What happens next?                                   listening to the views of the
zone. It is not a congestion
charge. Rather, the aim is to             We’ll be examining the feasibility                   public, key stakeholders and
reduce air pollution and improve          of each package in more                              partners throughout the process,
health. Revenue from the zone             detail. This includes ongoing                        ensuring the best outcome in any
                                          public engagement; identifying                       scenario.
                                          exemptions, the level of charges                     We’ll be holding regular drop-
 The Government’s                         and hours of operation; and                          ins, workshops and events
 role                                     assessing the economic, social,                      throughout the year.
                                          commercial and financial impacts
 The Government has already               of each option.
 provided Councils with the
                                                                                               Find out more
 funds to assess a range of               We are required to reach a                           • Go to www.bathnes.gov.uk/
 solutions, and more funds                decision on our preferred                              breathe
 will be available to implement           package i.e. Clean Air Zone
                                          B, C or D, along with a set of                       • Look out for our regular drop-
 necessary measures. The                                                                         ins and pop-up events
 cost of this project will not fall       non-charging measures, by
 to local taxpayers.                      December 2018 at the latest.                         • Subscribe to our newsletter

 The Government has also                                                                       • Join the conversation on social
                                          Public engagement                                      media #BathBreathes2021
 set a clear framework for
 the work. Our assessments,               We have to strike a balance with                     • Follow us on Twitter and
 reports and decisions must               a package that can deliver the                         Facebook
 comply with guidance issued              most benefit to people with the
 by the Government’s Joint Air            least impact on residents and                                   twitter.com/bathnes
 Quality Unit (JAQU).                     the economy. But it must also be
                                          capable of delivering air quality                               www.facebook.com/
                                                                                                          bathnes

                                                                                  www.bathnes.gov.uk/breathe
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