Urgent work to improve air quality has been given a boost by the World Health Organisation (WHO) declaring air pollution as carcinogenic. (1) Prior to the WHO announcement, air pollution had already been linked to other lung problems, heart failure and premature death. In the UK alone 29,000 people every year die because of air pollution.
Air quality in Brighton & Hove recently improved but some stubborn areas in the city centre remain, mainly linked to pollution from vehicles on the roads. (2)
Green Councillor Ian Davey, Lead Member for Transport on Brighton & Hove City Council said:
"The only way to clean up the air we all breathe is to reduce the number of polluting vehicles on our streets. This involves making public transport, cycling and walking safer and more reliable, and working with partners like the bus company to reduce the emissions from their vehicles.”
“We’ve always known that pollution is bad for our health, but this announcement shows that more needs to be done to tackle this invisible killer. That is why the work we are currently doing looking at setting up a Low Emissions Zone in the centre of the city is so important”