Three quarters of Londoners back Mayor's T-charge to tackle pollution

Deadly air: Smog hangs over a London street
Jeremy Selwyn
Ross Lydall @RossLydall20 October 2017

Three-quarters of Londoners back Sadiq Khan’s £10 weekday T-charge to cut levels of toxic air in central areas, a survey revealed today.

The British Heart Foundation poll, commissioned ahead of the introduction of the charge on Monday, also found that 94 per cent thought it was very or fairly important to reduce the capital’s air pollution.

Petrol and diesel vehicles that breach the Euro IV emissions standards - generally those built before 2006 - will have to pay an extra £10 to enter the congestion charge zone on top of the £11.50 standard charge.

Up to 10,000 vehicles a day are likely to be affected.

The YouGov poll of 1,053 adults found 74 per cent strongly or tended to support the T-charge, while 81 per cent believe current pollution levels present a risk to health.

London exceeds World Health Organisation limits for PM2.5 particles, leading 45 per cent of respondents to say this caused them to worry about living in the city for a long time, 38 per cent to say this caused them concerns about cycling and 28 per cent say they had concerns about sitting outside.

Mr Khan has declared the capital’s air quality to be a “public health crisis”, with more than 9,000 Londoners a year dying prematurely due to long-term exposure to toxic air.

Simon Gillespie, BHF chief executive, said: “Dangerous levels of air pollution in London are putting the heart health of the general public - particularly those with heart disease - at greater risk of a heart attack or stroke.

“We urgently need to protect Londoners from inhaling deadly air – particularly from small particles in diesel fumes, which our research shows increase the risk of a potentially deadly cardiac event.

“It’s extremely concerning that London’s toxic air could now force people to consider relocating, or avoid being outside.

“This is a wake-up call to how concerned the people of London are about the air they breathe. The Mayor’s toxicity charge is a step in the right direction, and we look forward to the introduction of a full Ultra Low Emissions Zone in 2019 which will help to further clean up London’s air.”

@RossLydall

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