Funding to boost air quality have been welcomed by Conservative-run East Sussex as we look forward to support for cleaner buses and taxis, and improve air quality across the county.
Sussex-Air, a partnership of local authorities across Sussex, has been awarded £876,300 from the Department for Food, Environment and Rural Affairs for local projects.
- The first includes upgrading the exhausts of around 40 double-decker buses serving Brighton & Hove and parts of East and West Sussex to reduce the emissions they produce.
- The second project aims to raise public awareness of the impact of air pollution and alongside an upgraded monitoring network, Sussex-air partners will relay the science and health impacts of poor air quality to our local communities. The Sussex network of air quality analysers will be supplemented with additional particulate (PM) monitors and a network of sensors.
Conservative councillor Claire Dowling, East Sussex County Council’s lead member for transport and environment, said: “We want to make it easier for people to use public transport to travel around our county and this funding will make sure the emissions generated by some of those journeys will be as low as possible.
“Air pollution has a huge impact on the environment as well as the health of our residents. The projects made possible by this funding will make a significant difference to air quality across East Sussex and is another positive step towards lowering emissions.”
A proportion of the most frequently used buses are “mid-life” and were not designed and built to the most recent emissions standards. The retrofit will allow them to continue to operate with lower emissions.
