Health charities welcome launch of vehicle pollution checker

The British Lung Foundation and Asthma UK have voiced approval regarding the launch of Mayor of London Sadiq Khan’s new emission scoring scheme, which will allow motorists to avoid buying the most polluting petrol cars and vans.

The new online ‘cleaner vehicle checker’ will include test results for new car and van models on the market and will provide accurate details on the emissions they produce on London’s roads. The emission scores will free purchasers from having to rely on official testing results which are often unrealistic.  

Currently, cars only have to pass Euro Standards emissions testing, which is limited to laboratory tests and had been proven to be unrealistic. However, the scheme will see purchasers checking the emission scores of nearly all new car and most new van models on a special website, will launch this autumn.

The move forms part of Khan’s plans to tackle London’s toxic air quality.

Dr Penny Woods, chief executive of the British Lung Foundation, said: "Helping motorists choose the least polluting vehicles by giving them real world information on emissions is a positive step in the battle to clean up the air we breathe. Air pollution is an invisible danger that hits hardest people with a lung condition and children whose lungs are still developing.”

Kay Boycott, chief executive at Asthma UK, says: “Our research tells us that two thirds of people with asthma find that air pollution makes their asthma worse, putting them at increased risk of a potentially life-threatening asthma attack.  Three people die of an asthma attack every day, and two of these deaths are preventable with better basic care. When people with asthma are in areas where air pollution levels are high it’s vital they check air pollution forecasts; carry their reliever inhaler with them at all times; and have an up to date written asthma action plan so they know what to do if their symptoms worsen.

The Mayor of London said: “My scheme will put an end to the smoke and mirrors that have been employed in official emissions tests.

"It will provide Londoners with an honest, accurate and independent evaluation of the emissions of most new cars and vans on our roads and on the showroom forecourt. By having ‘on the road’ testing I believe we will help Londoners make an informed choice and incentivise manufacturers to build cleaner vehicles sooner.

“This scheme is also a fantastic example of how big cities around the world can pool their expertise and their influence to encourage big industry to clean up its act. The toxicity of the air in London and many other big cities is an outrage, and schemes of the type we are introducing in London and Paris have the potential to make a massive difference to the quality of the air we all breathe.”