High Levels surrounding Great West Road and Chiswick High Road
Two air quality hotspots in the borough are to benefit from a £55K grant to reduce air pollution and implement practical measures to improve air quality, following a successful bid to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) by Hounslow Council.
The funding will focus on two areas, Chiswick High Road (by the George IV pub) and the Great West Road, Brentford, and will be used:
· to carry out a specialised traffic survey at the identified hotspots
· to evaluate strategies generated by the traffic modelling study
· to implement practical measures that could reduce air pollution
Michael Jordan, Hounslow’s Director of Environment, said:
“Vehicle exhausts account for over two thirds of Hounslow’s air pollution problem, and this can clearly be seen in the levels of pollution on major roads such as Chiswick High Road and the A4 Great West Road.
“This grant is welcome news, and will allow us to do some focussed work at these two hotspots before working with our partners to find ways of improving air quality in the area.”
Initial work to carry out a traffic count and identify the types of most heavily polluting vehicles via number-plate recognition technology is due to start in April.
Officers will then identify measures aimed at reducing pollution in the hotspots and work with stakeholders, including Transport for London, the Highways Agency, London Buses and the freight transport industry, to agree and implement the most suitable strategies.
For more information on what the council is doing to tackle air pollution, visit www.hounslow.gov.uk/air_quality.
March 26, 2012