M25 (Hansard, 23 March 1993)

§ Ms Walley
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what research he has commissioned on the air quality within vehicles on the M25.

§ Mr. Kenneth Carlisle
No research has been carried out on air quality in vehicles specifically on the M25. However research has been done recently on air quality in vehicles generally in urban areas, on motorways and on rural roads. It is described in chapter 2 of the first report of the quality of urban air review group published in January by the Department of the Environment.

§ Ms Walley
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what research he has commissioned to assess the effect of the M25 on ambient air quality.

§ Mr. Kenneth Carlisle
Some monitoring of air quality near junction 11 of the M25 was carried out in 1986 to help develop a computer model which the Department uses to assess the likely impact of new major roads and motorways when they are planned. There is a considerable body of work on the way in which roads and traffic more generally affect air quality both locally and further afield. This is described in the joint evidence provided to the Royal Commission on environmental pollution by my Department and the Department of the Environment last December.