Parents could face fines for running car engines outside schools
Written by News on 30/06/2017
People who leave their car engines running outside schools could be fined as part of efforts to cut air pollution.
"No idling zones" should be brought in outside schools, hospitals and care homes to protect vulnerable people from the poisonous fumes, suggest the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and Public Health England.
Professor Paul Lincoln, chief executive of UK health forum and chairman of the Nice guideline committee, told Sky News: "I think people will want to support this type of measure – (idling) is wasting fuel, wasting money basically and it’s contributing to climate change as well.
"At the moment there are drivers who just do not switch off the engine for whatever reason and I think they’re probably unaware of the impact this has on the health of others.
"Also, you can’t assume that pollution isn’t coming into the car as well and having an impact on you as the driver or occupant of the car. It’s not just the people externally."
Bylaws could be used to enforce the rules, the guidance said.
Westminster City Council is among those to have already introduced no-idling zones, with drivers fined £80 if they break the rules.
The council said that a car idling for one minute produces enough harmful chemicals to fill 150 balloons.
Other measures suggested include promoting driving in a way that avoids "rapid accelerations and decelerations"; providing charge points for electric vehicles in workplaces and residential areas and promoting car sharing and car clubs.
Councils could also consider a congestion charging zone within a clean air zone, real-time data could tell drivers about optimum driving speeds and speed bumps could be taken away in areas where average speeds are already low, the guidance said.
Around 25,000 people die every year from the effects of long-term exposure to air pollution in England, according to PHE.
RAC roads policy spokesman Nick Lyes said: "No one should have to suffer dirty air as a result of a driver leaving their engine on unnecessarily.
"Sadly, many drivers don’t realise the harm they are causing by doing this.
"Schools should work closely with local authorities to first encourage parents to switch their engines off. It’s right that those that then persist in leaving them on should be subject to a charge."
(c) Sky News 2017: Parents could face fines for running car engines outside schools
