Issue - meetings

Report of Head of Community Services

Purpose of Report

To declare Air Quality Management Areas in Banbury and Kidlington.

Recommendations

The meeting is recommended:

 1.1        To declare an Air Quality Management Area in Horsefair/North Bar, Banbury.

1.2         To declare an Air Quality Management Area in Bicester Road, Kidlington.

1.3         To agree deferring the declaration of an Air Quality Management Area in Kings End/Queens Avenue, Bicester so that additional monitoring and assessment can be carried out following the changes to the road layout.

Resolved

(1)          That an Air Quality Management Area in Horsefair/North Bar/South Bar, Banbury be declared.

(2)          That an Air Quality Management Area in Bicester Road, Kidlington be declared.

(3)          That the declaration of an Air Quality Management Area in Kings End/Queens Avenue, Bicester be deferred so that additional monitoring and assessment can be carried out following the changes to the road layout.

The Head of Community Services submitted a report to declare Air Quality Management Areas in Banbury and Kidlington.

Resolved

(1)          That an Air Quality Management Area in Horsefair/North Bar/South Bar, Banbury be declared.

(2)          That an Air Quality Management Area in Bicester Road, Kidlington be declared.

(3)          That the declaration of an Air Quality Management Area in Kings End/Queens Avenue, Bicester be deferred so that additional monitoring and assessment can be carried out following the changes to the road layout.

Reasons

Due to exceedances of the annual mean air quality objective for nitrogen dioxide it is recommended that AQMA’s are declared for Horsefair/North Bar/South Bar in Banbury and Bicester Road in Kidlington.

Due to significant changes to the road layout in Bicester during 2013 it is recommended that the declaration of an AQMA in the Kings End/Queens Avenue area of Bicester be deferred until additional monitoring and assessment has been undertaken, so that the impact of these changes on air quality can be assessed. This course of action has been agreed with Defra.

Options

Option 1: An alternative option would be to not declare the areas as AQMA’s. However, if an air quality objective is not being met then the Council is required to declare that area as an AQMA and so for this reason this is not an alternative option.