Five recipients of £1m air quality business fund announced

Five projects in line to receive a share of a £1 million fund to establish ‘Business Low Emission Neighbourhoods’ across London have been announced.

The funding, is being offered by the Mayor of London through the Air Quality Business Fund launched in the summer, will fund business-led projects to improve air quality on a high street, around office buildings or in a retail park.

Five projects across London have been awarded a share of a £1 million fund for initiatives to tackle air quality

Measures such as anti-idling campaigns, zero-emission delivery services and cleaner walking routes for staff and customers are among those being encouraged through the schemes.

Projects in Southwark, Hammersmith and Fulham, Islington, Camden and Westminster are among those to have been awarded funding. A total of 15 projects applied for funding, City Hall has said.

Announcing the projects which had successfully applied for funding, the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “London’s toxic air is a public health crisis and I’m delighted to be working with businesses across the capital to help rid the city of these pollution hotspots. As a pro-business Mayor I am pleased to be working with businesses to clean up our air.

“Targeted local initiatives, such as Low Emission Neighbourhoods, are a great weapon in the fight against air pollution and this action we are taking is vital for safeguarding London’s health.”

Among those to be awarded funding were initiatives by The Better Bankside and Team London Bridge Business Improvement Districts in Southwark, which will deliver a project around Borough High Street enhancing and promoting routes to reduce emissions on main roads.

Funding will be used to develop a clean walking route between London Bridge Station and Guys Hospital

Interventions will include a clean walking route from London Bridge Station to Guys Hospital, consolidating parcel deliveries so that they are sent into one location and distributed via a low or zero-emission vehicle to reduce congestion and pollution, a green cycle path, and anti-idling campaigns.

Projects

Hammersmith Business Improvement District will deliver a project around the Hammersmith Flyover working closely with local organisations such as the Lyric Theatre, which have offered free space for events and workshops.

The project includes a secure hub for people to store their bikes, and a host of greening and other improvements such as a green wall to help transform some of the grey car-dominated parts of this busy destination.

In Islington, the Archway Town Centre Group will deliver initiatives including a shared electric vehicle for deliveries, a green walking route, and the removal of parking spaces outside a children’s centre to be replaced by new planting and trees.

It is also exploring the possibility of installing lockers for deliveries at, or close to, Archway station, to help residents avoid missed deliveries and provide an alternative to getting online shopping delivered to work.

In Camden, Euston Business Improvement District will provide a cleaner walking route from Euston to Regents Park, helping people avoid some of the most polluted roads in London.

Walking routes between Euston and Regent’s Park will also be developed

And, Northbank Business Improvement District is leading a project in Westminster around Aldwych and the Strand which will reduce pollution and to make the area more inviting for walking and cycling.

As part of the project, consultants will work with local businesses to help them cut unnecessary deliveries. Other interventions will include street improvements such as parks and innovative lighting, a project with St Clement Danes School to improve walking routes to school, and cleaner walking and cycling routes.

London Plan

Elsewhere, the Mayor has today outlined details of his draft London Plan, which it is claimed will include proposals to reduce car-usage, and make walking and cycling easier in the capital.

According to City Hall, the plan will put new requirements on developers to reduce the dominance of vehicles and prioritise more active transport in creating inclusive, safe and accessible streets across London.

This will include doubling the requirement for the level of cycle parking outside shops, and making new housing developments ‘car-free’.

The Mayor, said: “My draft London Plan will set out how I want to transform how London’s infrastructure works, making cycling and walking a safe and convenient alternative for millions more journeys every day. If you buy or rent a home in London and make regular journeys to the work or shops, I want to see safe and secure cycle parking available for every journey, across all parts of the city. For too long our housing and infrastructure has been built solely around the car.”