09.11.17
‘Breathe Liverpool’ initiative will see 100 new car charging points installed across city
Liverpool City Council has released new plans to begin lowering emissions in the city as part of its clean air project.
The ‘Breathe Liverpool’ initiative will involve the installation of 100 electrical car charging points across the city centre in car parks, supermarkets, leisure centres, and on streets.
Council figures show that particulate air pollution contributes to 4% of all deaths in the city, with long term exposure leading to conditions like heart disease, strokes, lung cancer and respiratory diseases like asthma and chronic bronchitis.
In addition to the new charging points, there are plans to introduce a diesel-free fleet of council vehicles in the city centre by 2019 and across the city by 2024. These would eventually be fully replaced again by electric and compressed and natural gas vehicles.
“Although the city has made great strides in reducing levels of sulphur dioxide over recent years, pollution from vehicle related emissions such as Nitrogen Dioxide and particulate matter is still too high,” commented Joe Anderson, mayor of Liverpool.
“It is not good enough for us to be just below the worst as it still has a direct effect on the health of many residents and creates a huge cost for the NHS, which means it has to be a real priority.
“There is already a lot of good work being delivered by partners such as Merseytravel, but we can support that by using our influence to deliver changes which will improve air quality.
“By 2025 I want the city to have developed a central heart where walking, cycling, electric vehicles and clean fuels will dominate.”
The initiative also includes the introduction of new electric buses to the Shell Circular route in the north of the city, which can do 130 miles on just one charge.
Sadiq Khan, mayor of London, has been using low-emission zones in the capital as a method of reducing the use of petrol and diesel vehicles.
Similarly, Liverpool City Council will be working with the Combined Authority to research the costs of introducing a clean air zone.
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