‘Be careful’: London air pollution alert spans multiple days

Sadiq Khan has warned residents of the capital to take care this week due to high levels of pollutants in the city’s atmosphere. 

London’s Mayor as also warned against unnecessary car journeys in a bid to help bring air pollution levels back down, with cold, foggy conditions, and a lack of wind, contributing to the current conditions, which were first flagged on Saturday with a warning in place across the city.

Messages have also been placed throughout the Transport for London (TfL) network, with schools and boroughs notified. This is the first time a warning has been issued this year, which has seen temperatures settle around zero over successive days, with freezing weather known to bring about spikes in some forms of pollutant. 

‘Following the latest forecast from Imperial College London, I am issuing a ‘high’ air-pollution alert,’ said Khan. ‘We all need to be careful over the next few days. I’m urging Londoners to look after each other by choosing to walk, cycle or take public transport where possible, avoiding unnecessary car journeys, stopping engine idling and not burning garden waste, all of which contributes to high levels of pollution.’

Unsurprisingly, policymakers in both the Mayor’s Office and at TfL have pointed to this latest pollution event as proof London’s expansion of the Ultra Low Emission Zone – which will increase in size to cover the entire city this week – is essential. Last year, Air Quality News published an in-depth report based on compelling evidence to show that the most disadvantaged communities in the UK capital were bearing the brunt of the toxic air.

Image: Robert Bye