Institution's response to today's launch of the Ultra Low Emission Zone in central London:

Dr Jenifer Baxter, Head of Engineering at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, comments on today's launch of the Ultra Low Emission Zone in central London:

“We welcome today’s launch of the Ultra Low Emission Zone in central London. It is an important step, however we need to be making a much more determined effort to deal with transport emissions across the UK.  

We need to monitor transport emissions more effectively to have better evidence about pollution sources, which will help us decide on the best solutions for our communities.  

In particular, we would like to see the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs work with the Department for Transport to introduce emission monitoring equipment across our transport network for example in streets, underground stations and enclosed railway stations along with real-time on-vehicle monitoring.

We called for a Clean Air Act in our A Breath of Fresh Air report, where we outlined our need for coherent and consistent monitoring of transport emissions, so informed targets can be set. We recommended incentives for freight deliveries outside peak hours and highlighted the potential to retrofit diesel trains to cut emissions while trains are standing at platforms.”

Notes to Editors

• For interview requests and queries contact the Institution of Mechanical Engineers’ Press Office on 07990 566412 or email media@imeche.org.
• The Institution of Mechanical Engineers was established in 1847 and has some of the world’s greatest engineers in its history books. It is one of the fastest growing professional engineering institutions. Headquartered in London, we have operations around the world and over 120,000 members in more than 140 countries working at the heart of the most important and dynamic industries such as the automotive, rail, aerospace, medical, power and construction industries.