Calor Gas supports Bill to reduce diesel emissions in cities

Calor specifically supports Geraint Davies’ promotion for the provision of vehicles powered by liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), a cleaner and cheaper fuel than petrol or diesel.

A report from the Royal College of Physicians and the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health has revealed this week that unborn and young children are particularly susceptible to air pollution. To counteract the health risks that such high levels of pollution can cause, the report also demands for local authorities to have the power to close or divert roads to reduce the traffic, especially near schools, when air pollution levels are high.

Calor is calling on the Chancellor to remove the current fuel duty escalator on LPG, in the March Budget to support the reduction in poor air quality. As LPG is a much cheaper and cleaner fuel than diesel and petrol, Calor believes that taxi drivers in urban areas could save money and reduce poor air quality by converting their existing diesel taxis to cleaner and cheaper LPG rather than spend the excessive £40,000 to convert their cabs to electric; an LPG conversion for a taxi costs only £8,000.

Calor’s proposal to the Treasury will provide economic benefit to society at large including much lower levels of public health expenditure, if the Chancellor removes the escalator.

Calor’s proposal and today’s Ten Minute Minute Rule Motion ‘Air Quality’ Bill, follows the recent news that London’s pollution levels had breached the nitrogen dioxide (NO2) hourly legal limit for the whole of 2016, just eight days into the year. Road transport is estimated to be responsible for about 50% of total emissions of nitrogen oxides meaning those living in large urban areas and close to busy roads are at greater risk of lung diseases to which NO2 has been linked.