Ways to make Bath breathe easier | Letters

Readers offer their views on the city's proposed clean air zoneThe proposed clean air zone for Bath places the financial burden of solving the pollution problem on individual motorists and businesses (Bath's drivers choke on proposals for daily ?9 pollution charge, 26 November). The problem has been known about for years but it is only now, with the threat of legal action, that the government and local authorities have been forced to act to solve the problem in the shortest possible time. This means that instead of taking a strategic approach to the whole issue of road transport and pollution, a "quick fix" solution is being forced on motorists. The idea that the polluter pays (either by paying the charge, upgrading their vehicle or finding alternative means of transport) disproportionately affects those who are on low incomes who cannot afford the cleaner cars and live in areas outside of Bath where housing is less expensive. These areas are poorly served by public transport links to Bath and have suffered a reduction in services in the last few years due to the withdrawal of financial support from local authorities.Charging to enter the clean air zone is a big stick but there are very few carrots being offered, particularly with respect to better public transport. Public acceptance of the clean air zone proposals would be greater if people could see there were genuine alternatives to using their cars. Reducing bus services at this time makes no sense.Mike ParrBath Continue reading...