Low emission vehicles and smoky buses

Cycling along Oxford Road the other day near Whitworth Park I noticed a lovely green (in colour) sticker in the back window of a Finglands bus which proudly proclaimed that "this is a low emission vehicle".

So I was a bit surprised to be enveloped in a cloud of black sooty fumes when the bus pulled out from the bus stop....if this was a low emission vehicle I would hate to be behind a vehicle that had high emissions!

That got me wondering who has responsibility for verifying the claims that specific vehicles meet a "low emission" standard. A quick call to GMPTE pointed me in the direction of the Dirty Diesels Campaign webpage which informs us that:

• "Well-maintained vehicles should produce very little smoke, except when they are starting up, accelerating hard, or climbing steep hills.

• However, some vehicles emit dense plumes of smoke, and may not meet legal emissions standards, they may be Dirty Diesels!

• Dirty Diesels cause air pollution, can be a health hazard and are bad for the environment."

On these criteria I don't know whether the bus I was behind would be classed as a 'dirty diesel' but if you come across a vehicle you think qualifies as a Dirty Diesel then please report it via the website form or by email to cleanervehicles@manchester.gov.uk

You will need to provide the following information:

• Vehicle registration number:

• Bus (vehicle) company name:

• Location of bus/vehicle:

• Date and time of sighting:

• Your contact details: (although you can remain anonymous if you so wish!)

Complaints about excessive or smoky emissions from commercial vehicles such as lorries, buses, coaches, will be passed to the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) the Government agency responsible for controlling exhaust emissions from such vehicles and they should supply a smoke test to show that the bus either did not breach the limit or has been fixed.

If you report a smoky taxi then the complaint will be referred to your Local Authority Licensing Section. 

GMPTE only has powers to control 'dirty diesels' on the land it directly owns (generally bus stations), but Manchester City Council (the red wardens) have powers to fine buses that are stopped and producing 'unnecessary pollution' from idling enginges. So if you know any 'hot spot' areas where this happens, report it.

Unfortunately it would appear that VOSA only keep records for 3 months which is not very good for monitoring whether specific bus companies have a poor record on emission levels. A subject matter for a future blog.

More details on air quality and transport emissions can be found on the Environmental Protection website.

Happy cycling and breathe easy.