North Kesteven District Council’s Climate Emergency Action Plan includes targets around ‘Reducing Transport Emissions,’ as this equates to more than a third of emissions released within the District.
Running a vehicle engine whist waiting or stationary contributes to elevated nitrogen oxides and fine particulate matter, causing poor air quality. This type of air pollution can trigger asthma and worsen lung and heart conditions, with some estimates suggesting 36,000 deaths per year being linked to air pollution.
Idling also releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, contributing to climate change.
To address this issue North Kesteven District Council launched its no idling campaign ‘Be Smart, Stop – Start’.
Initially this project focussed on schools, in particular the William Alvey School in Sleaford where a Zephyr air quality monitoring station has been installed.
This unit demonstrated that air quality in the vicinity was worse at times when children were being picked up or dropped off. In contrast, air quality improved significantly during school holidays.
To raise awareness, we provided the school with lesson plans and promotional air fresheners for parents’ cars, alongside information leaflets explaining the need to cut idling.
Following this success we are extending the scheme into other sectors. To do this we have sent letters to all school transport contractors and taxi operators in the district, providing them with information and asking them to ensure drivers turn engines off while waiting.
Previous projects include a poster competition – garnering entries from schools in Sleaford, Swinderby, Washingborough and as far afield as Pakistan!
You can find copies of the leaflets in the downloads section on the right hand side of this page.
