CROYDON COMMENTARY: It is not only the Evening Standard that is supporting the London-wide expansion of ULEZ, the Ultra Low Emission Zone, as loyal reader DAVID SQUIRES explains
Smile, you’re on camera: ULEZ is coming to Croydon in August
ULEZ is an interesting issue. The ultimate problem is that we need to find a way to encourage more people to make fewer unnecessary trips by car. We have an obese population, with an ever-increasing volume of chronic illnesses. Rather than taking a 15-minute walk to the shop to get some milk, people would rather drive the same journey, as it gives them an extra five minutes in front of the TV.
I work in the Square Mile in London and it is hard to describe how much more pleasant it is now that it is no longer a slow-moving car park. I used to dread leaving the office because even walking for a few minutes was a nasty experience. That is not the case anymore.
A lot of the people who do complain about ULEZ do so from the perspective of where this is leading. I think we all know where it is ultimately leading (which could be bad for everyone), but again the problem is that humans are ultimately lazy and a blunt object is needed to change bad habits.
It always amuses me when I see someone say something like “but what about disabled people”. Quite often the person who says that is the same person who sees a disabled person trying to cross the road and just ignores them, then uses them as a “but what about” when it suits their needs.
My personal concern with car use is less about the fumes, but the particulates from tyres and brakes. Evidence seems to suggest that they are an increasing issue and the move to things like electric cars will not help (in fact their additional weight could make it worse).
Having said that, I recently had to make a trip to a hospital appointment and walked there from the train station. The air was disgusting, and that was clearly a result of the unending queue of cars pumping out fumes. Imagine if for one day they put something in the petrol so that the fumes coming out of car exhausts was coloured. I think people would actually be horrified at what they would see.
All I can say to people is try to do some trips that you would normally use your car for differently. Walk, cycle, use public transport. Enjoy your surroundings. Take a diversion via a local park. When you are walking, look at how badly many people are driving and ask the question whether you also exhibit any of those bad habits.
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