As part of the Government legal limits for pollution, we need to introduce a Clean Air Zone to ensure Bristol meets those limits within the shortest possible time. Bristol’s Clean Air Zone will start in summer 2022. No vehicles are banned from entering a Clean Air Zone but older and more polluting vehicles have to pay a daily charge for travelling within the zone.
In December 2020, BSWN responded to the consultation on Bristol’s Clean Air Zone and provided several recommendations regarding access to information, targeted support, reduced charges, and broader infrastructure improvements. The full response can be found here.
With the implementation of the zone nearly upon us, we requested information on whether any of these recommendations were considered. Specifically, on whether any of the £42 million package been allocated to supporting Black and minoritised communities and businesses to prepare for the changes?
The team responded by saying that, groups have been prioritised for financial support including workers on low incomes and SMEs, so there will be a lot of cross-over with the communities and businesses you mention above. There are also exemptions that will provide more time for some people to prepare.
We will also be targeting our general engagement and promotion sustainable travel vouchers where we can. As mentioned above, we would be keen to work with your network on this. For instance, we are providing information for newsletters, offering webinars, attend events or look at more bespoke activity such as additional targeted mail-outs or door knocking.
More specifically, the team also kindly responded to each of our recommendations:
1. Clear links to a website to check whether vehicles will meet the CAZ standards.
We are promoting the vehicle checker online. There is an explanation to use the results for Birmingham until Government add Bristol to their web page. Bristol's Clean Air Zone - bristol.gov.uk
2. Targeted support to small & medium-sized Black and Minoritised led businesses and organisations to help with the transition.
SMEs and charities will be prioritised in the first round of funding. We are also trying to target our initial engagement – for instance the first round of postcards will be sent to areas close to the zone that have higher levels of deprivation. We are also working closely with the taxi trade, and we have appointed a telemarketing centre to contact businesses in and around the zone.
3. Reduced charges for businesses with low turnover.
We will have a series of exemptions until the end of 2022 for groups including workers in the zone on low incomes, and residents within the zone. There will also be targeted financial support to help people change their vehicles.
4. A reduction on the daily charge for community or school transport vehicles.
There will be an exemption until the end of 2022 for community transport vehicles and a full ongoing exemption for disabled passenger transport vehicles (both based on tax class). There is dedicated funding for both vehicle replacement and engine retrofit for buses and coaches.
5. Direct communication with CAZ recipients of financial support packages to ensure they are aware of the support and how to access it.
We have a comprehensive comms and engagement plan that include local and regional advertising, postcards to every Bristol resident, a telemarketing team, and a dedicated engagement team working with businesses and communities to hold events and respond to individuals.
6. Option 1 and 2 boundaries are too small and may lead to parking displacement into surrounding areas. The zone(s) should cover all areas with air quality limit exceedances including more of Bristol’s main arterial roads. The main purpose of the CAZ is of course to encourage the move to greener vehicles, but a larger area would further encourage use of sustainable transport.
Modelling shows that Option 1 (the smaller CAZ D zone) will help reach compliance as quickly as the combined Option 1 and 2 and help improve air quality across the city. However, it should have less financial impact on small businesses than a wider zone. We will continue to monitor any impacts such as displacement once the project is launched.
7. More broadly, the CAZ will do little to improve the city’s emissions targets without improved public transport links, refined road layouts, and more cycle lanes.
The CAZ is very much a public health measure (aimed at nitrogen dioxide) directed by government, and its primary goal is not to reduce carbon emissions. However, we are using it as an opportunity to encourage behaviour change. As part of the funding, we have around £4m specially for comms and behaviour change and this will include the issuing of sustainable travel vouchers and personalised travel plans to encourage greater use of sustainable options. Again, we will be primarily targeting our engagement of this offer to more deprived and marginalised groups impacted by the CAZ.
There are several other significant projects that will help us meet carbon emissions targets and improve our transport network. These include consultations for bus corridor projects funded by WECA (A4, A34/A4018), bus gates in the city centre to prioritise buses and walking/cycling, StreetSpace schemes to reallocate road space and liveable neighbourhoods. This is of course a huge challenge and needs to be delivered in an equitable way.
I would encourage your network to comment on the current A37/A4018 transport corridor project - Consultation on improvements to the number 2 bus route (A37/A4018) - Bristol - Citizen Space and the Park Row / Upper Maudlin St scheme outside the BRI/Children’s Hospital Consultation on improvements to Park Row, Perry Road, Upper Maudlin Street and Colston Street - Bristol - Citizen Space
For further details on the clean air zone, you can visit Bristol City Council’s page here which provides information on charges, exemptions, financial support, and area covered by the zone.