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| Councillor David Harrison |
“Totton people should be quite shocked that the centre of town has been declared as an Air Quality Management Area”. These were the words of Lib Dem Councillor, David Harrison, speaking at a meeting of the Planning Committee of the Town Council this week.
The committee were invited to express views following a presentation from Environmental Health Officers about a draft action plan, designed to tackle the problem of poor air quality in the area of Rumbridge Street / Junction Road, by the busy train crossing.
At one point, Officers referred to the problem not being nearly so serious as some parts of central London. It was suggested that a series of additional measures be undertaken now that it was clear most motorists are ignoring the signs to switch off engines, as they queue up at the train gates.
Councillor David Harrison said “This is not Central London. Totton is part of the New Forest district. It is quite shocking to find that the air our residents breathe is polluted to an unacceptable level. It’s no wonder things like asthma are on the increase. I can’t think of anything more important than the air we breath.”
The evidence produced by Officers suggests that a large part of the pollution is caused by large commercial vehicles and that it looks like it might be necessary to extend the declared AQMA over a larger area, to include the High Street and Commercial Road.
At the suggestion of Councillor Harrison, Officers will undertake further work to identify the extent to which HGV traffic travelling into and out of Eling wharf, via the High Street is impacting on the overall figures. Councillor Harrison says “ I already want to route HGV traffic away from the High Street for safety and nuisance reasons. This report adds further weight to the case for having a permanent access to the wharf from the westbound A35”. |
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