Time to reduce Parade pollution

Every week in the Courier, there is a feature on another development proposed in our area. Every new development will bring further strain on our transport infrastructure. Labour councillors in Leamington and Warwick are planning positive action to reduce the amount of pollution that our transport creates.

What are we doing? We are campaigning to get 20 mph speed limits in sensitive areas, monitoring every new traffic scheme that is designed to reduce queues to make sure that they really work, promoting better quality cycle lanes and promoting better public transport.

What we don’t want to do is hang around until it is too late and our roads end up in gridlock. Air quality is one of the most important challenges that we face in Leamington and Warwick. It is very poor in places right now and unless we start to be creative in our approach to transport, it will only get worse.

A small but not insignificant problem that we are trying to improve is the amount of buses that leave their engines running at the top of the Parade. I think the Parade is the ideal street to manage our buses.

As a regular bus passenger I know that it is convenient for passengers and reduces pollution in our side streets. However, drivers tend to keep their engines idling when they have to stay stationary for any period of time. Stagecoach has been very helpful in this matter but drivers are still doing it.

If you are a driver stationary at the top of the Parade having a quick catch up on the local news, please turn your engine off!

Jerry Weber, Warwick district councillor, Leamington Clarendon