Clean Air Zone in Bath IS cutting air pollution, report says

New data shows air quality is improving both in Bath city centre and outside the Clean Air Zone (CAZ) following the introduction of the scheme.

A report to be considered by cabinet on Thursday 9 September reveals that nitrogen dioxide (NO2) levels have dropped by more than 12% compared with the same quarter in 2019, but have the potential to exceed government limits at four locations within the zone.

The report, the first in a series which will regularly monitor the performance of the CAZ, reveals that the number of chargeable non-compliant vehicles entering the zone since its launch has dropped with the percentage of compliant vehicles in the chargeable categories, (i.e., taxis, vans LGV's, buses, coaches and heavy goods vehicles HGV's) increasing by an average of 49% over the same period.

All but three of the 220 buses that operate on scheduled routes in the zone and more than 90% of HGVs and 90% of taxis travelling into the zone are now compliant with emission standards.

The report also confirms that more than one thousand non-compliant vehicles have so far been approved for the council's financial assistance scheme, in addition to businesses and individuals upgrading vehicles using their own resources.

Councillor Sarah Warren, Deputy Leader and cabinet member for Climate and Sustainable Travel, said: "This is very encouraging news. The aim of the Clean Air Zone is to improve air quality and reduce pollution which can have a devastating impact on people's health, triggering asthma attacks and making heart and lung conditions worse. So, I'm pleased that the early indications are that the Clean Air Zone is working.

"It is, however, early days and more time is needed. Normal traffic volumes in the city have been affected by Covid and the closure of Cleveland Bridge has caused some temporary changes to traffic patterns. I am also concerned that despite significant progress in reducing NO2 levels, there are still four locations in the city – Cleveland Place East junction, Dorchester Street, Victoria Buildings and Wells Road near the Churchill Bridge gyratory – where NO2 levels have the potential to exceed the government target we are aiming for.

"We will therefore continue to closely monitor the impact of the CAZ and our progress in quarterly reports.

"Our aim is to meet the government target in all locations, whilst minimising the social, economic and distributional impact of the zone on our residents and businesses. To achieve this, our current focus is on upgrading a relatively small cohort of commercial vehicles and, in particular, older highly polluting vans.

"I am pleased to see that the number of chargeable, non-compliant vehicles entering the zone each day has dropped over the past three months and I'd like to thank those residents and businesses who have already upgraded their vehicles and reorganised their fleets or who are making plans for their vehicles to become compliant with the zone's emission standards.

"Of course, we are also keeping a very close eye on whether non-compliant traffic is being displaced to areas outside the CAZ. Traffic monitoring indicates that volumes are still down by 9% compared with the same quarter in 2018, but we are investigating where residents and communities have raised concerns. Of the fifteen sites where concerns were expressed four have been found to have no significant issues and investigations into the other eleven are ongoing."

The Clean Air Zone was launched on 15 March 2021 to urgently tackle harmful levels of air pollution caused by the most polluting taxis, vans, buses and larger commercial vehicles regularly driving in the city.

It was the first charging CAZ to be launched outside London and works to reduce pollution in Bath by levying a £9 or £100 a day charge on anyone driving a chargeable higher emission vehicle in the zone. This excludes private cars and motorcycles which are not charged.

Grants and interest-free finance are available to encourage owners of non-compliant polluting vehicles to replace them with cleaner, compliant ones, not subject to charges.

Clean Air Zone details - a reminder

Owners of all higher polluting vehicles, except private cars, are required to pay either £9 or £100 a day if they drive in the zone. This applies to pre euro 6 diesel and pre euro 4 petrol vehicles, including taxis, vans, pick-ups, some campers, LGVs, minibuses, buses, coaches, larger motorhomes, and HGVs. Local and national exemptions apply to certain vehicles and to support vulnerable groups.

The council has a financial assistance scheme to support people with non-compliant, chargeable vehicles regularly entering the zone. This includes grants of up to £4,500 plus interest-free finance is available for taxis, LGV and van owners. Grants of up to £20,000 - £35,000 are available to replace or upgrade buses, coaches and HGVs, plus interest-free finance.

-Traffic across the area has increased as pandemic restrictions have lifted and national data from the Department of Transport indicates that there are more vans and HGVs on our roads than ever before. Meanwhile, the number of non-compliant, chargeable vehicles in the zone is falling.

- The council operated a soft launch for two months until 18 May. Up until this date, soft-launch penalty charge notices (PCNs) were issued.

- People who did not self-declare and pay the zone charge within seven days of their journey were given a further seven days to pay the outstanding charge before levying a fine of £120/£60. Full enforcement of the zone started on 18 May, which means that anyone failing to self-declare and pay for their journey within seven days was issued a fine of £120 (or £60 if paid within 14 days), plus the outstanding charge without the option to just pay the £9/100 zone charge.

- Total income from zone entry charges since launch is £1.035M and settlement of Penalty Charge Notices (PCN's) is £0.81M. Total income is therefore around £115k per week, however the number of non-compliant vehicles seen in the zone is falling. Revenue needs to first cover the operational costs of the zone, and any revenue made over and above this MUST be reinvested into sustainable transport projects.