Derby pollution hotspot on A52 set to be scrapped - but just five people back plan

Pictured is bad traffic in Derby
-Credit: (Image: Derby Telegraph)


Legal action to quash air quality issues in a Derby pollution hotspot is set to be scrapped although just five members of the public supported the plan. On Friday, October 4, Derby City Council is set to scrap a legally-mandated air quality management area for the A52/Spondon area which has been in force for more than 20 years.

This comes as the council says harmful levels of nitrogen dioxide, highly prevalent in the 1990s, which saw the zone’s adoption as an AQMQ in 2001, have been within acceptable levels since 2010. It says: “The council has operated NO2 monitoring in this part of the city for over 20 years. Over the last few years, a steady decline in concentrations has been observed, with no exceedances of the National Air Quality Objectives noted at any monitoring site since as far back as 2010.

“The key rationale and evidence for declaring and maintaining the Derby NO2 AQMA No.2 A52 no longer exists and therefore under the Environment Act, the AQMA should be revoked. It is important to note that revocation of an AQMA, does not inherently mean that monitoring must stop at that location. Subsequently, there are no plans to do so at this time.”

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The council says a public consultation on the potential “revocation” of the AQMA saw “general support”. Only 15 responses were received from members of the public, with most not offering a view either for or against the potential scrapping of the AQMA. Just five people agreed with the plans versus two against, portrayed by the council as 33 per cent supporting the plan and 13 per cent opposing it.

Meanwhile, the council said it did not target any stakeholders for their views on the issue, writing: “It was felt that a public consultation was the most appropriate route for public participation and notification of the proposals. No stakeholders have been targeted directly in relation to the plans.” It says it will continue to assess planning applications in the area, including on the Derby Triangle development, for potential air quality impacts.

The council says scrapping this AQMA has no impact on the city-wide air quality measures being rolled out, including the second zone which covers the inner and outer ring roads and Osmaston Road, adopted in 2001. It claims reducing the speed limit on the A52 to 50mph has helped lessen traffic emissions and queuing.

The authority said: “There are now a greater number of low-emission vehicles on our roads. As vehicle technologies improve and more people move to electric vehicles, this is only set to improve air quality further in future years. The A52 Congestion Scheme (completed in 2020) has reduced the amount of queuing and also slowed speeds down to 50mph on the A52. This has helped to reduce traffic emissions.

The council added: “Traffic numbers decreased along the A52 as a result of Covid. Although traffic is back up close to where it was, more people are working from home nowadays and through investment in a number of sustainable transport schemes, the council is now supporting more and more people to use low emission forms of transport instead of driving, such as walking, cycling, scooting or taking the bus.”

It claims the revocation will not have an impact on air quality issues in the area and that properties in the zone could now be “viewed more positively by potential purchasers, potentially increasing their value”.

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