Residents have raised the question as to whether Canal Street should be re-opened as concerns were raised over a highly polluted and congested road in the city. While levels are improving, Queen's Road remains "a problem" according to a councillor responsible for the environment at Nottingham City Council.
Air pollution has been linked to 40,000 UK deaths every year in England, and Nottingham has been at the forefront of efforts to change this. The council is aiming to make Nottingham the first city in the country 'carbon neutral', with a target of 2028. One of the ways it is seeking to achieve this is through reducing pollutant levels from traffic.
The Labour-run city council says it is aiming to cut particulate pollution and nitrogen dioxide levels by 20%. While it has had considerable success, with a 'Clean Air Zone' similar to that in London not needed due to the council's efforts so far, some roads are still proving problematic, particularly post-pandemic.
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According to the Air Quality Index PM 2.5 levels (particulates with a diameter less than 2.5 micro-meters which can cause damage to airways and pass into the bloodstream) in Nottingham are "good" and meet the World Health Organisation's guidelines. While positive, councillor Sally Longford, who represents Lenton and Wollaton East and acts as the portfolio holder for energy and environment, emphasised levels had been 'going backwards' ever since the city began to reopen.
She says the council had been improving its monitoring but did raise concerns ahead of the winter. She said: "We've made a lot of progress in many ways with things like the electrification of the fleet, of our fleet, by introducing more electric vehicle charging points, encouraging people to make that switch, offering the electric van trial and electric taxis, so lots of things have happened.
"However, there was a big impact on the amount of traffic and travel during the Covid period and that actually helped to move the reduction in emissions, however, it is going back now and obviously that is something we are not very sure about.
"There is also the concern with the rising costs of fuel people might go back to burning solid fuel and those things which generate air pollution and particulates. That could cause us problems."
One road, in particular, remains highly polluted. Queen's Road, which runs past Nottingham Railway Station, acts as the new 'Southern Relief Road' following changes to the city centre's road layout.
While the road has historically been busy, pollutant levels remain high and councillor Longford says it is "a problem". Some believe it has become busier ever since Canal Street was closed as part of the ongoing redevelopment and pedestrianisation of the Greater Broad Marsh zone.
Peter Bollington, of the Meadows, said: "If you move the traffic from here you'll only have to move it elsewhere. Before you had multiple ways to get somewhere in the city, but now there is no choice.
"It has got a lot worse over the last year and a half. They should reopen Canal Street again, because everything is being forced down here.
"There is a lot of traffic and certainly people living here would struggle to have their windows open. But what is the solution? A lot of people who work in Nottingham live outside the city, so have to travel in."
A resident of The Picture Works, a block of apartments which sits opposite the railway station, added: "You can taste the pollution. One thing I wish is they had another crossing so I did not have to go all the way up to the traffic lights. They could reopen the road near the new car park, too."
During a recent council meeting councillor Andrew Rule, who represents Clifton West for the Conservatives, asked if the Southern Relief Road route had led to problematic pollution levels, with cars no longer able to drive along Canal Street. Councillor Longford responded to say: "One of the monitoring stations is on Queen's Road on the opposite side of the station.
"That has always been one of the most polluted spots in the city from an air pollution point of view. That is obviously because it is a busy road but also it is next to the station and they still have a lot of diesel trains going in there.
"They still have not made the switch to electric trains which we have been lobbying for, for many years. Generally, air pollution across the city has gone down because of the measures we have taken like the gas buses, the electrification of the fleet and all these things, but, as I recall from the latest data, Queens Road has not changed much and gone down.
"I suspect that is partly because a lot of the traffic that goes down there is still congested, because there has been a lot of construction work along there which means the road is narrower often, there are lanes out. So I think Queens Road is a problem."
She added it is "not going to be a good year in terms of the environment", with the council prioritising getting people back into the city centre to boost the economy following the lockdowns during the Covid pandemic. More barriers are not what the city needs at the moment, she explained.
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