Report reveals retrofitted buses failed to cut pollution despite government funding, raising concerns.
Bradford Council learned more at a meeting where they received a Clean Air Zone update and heard the government delayed the report for a year and a half. The meeting revealed encouraging news, with illegal air pollution areas falling dramatically from 35 to only three.
Almost all Bradford taxis are now low emission, giving Bradford one of the cleanest taxi fleets. However, the report highlighted problems with retrofitting, with two polluted areas remaining along bus routes: Manchester and Queens Roads.
Bradford was required to improve air quality in 2018, leading to the 2020 announcement of a Clean Air Zone. This plan would require polluting vehicles to pay a fee to enter the zone. The government provided Bradford with £39 million in funding to support this transition.
A portion of this money was allocated for bus engine replacements. Grants of up to £16,000 were used to convert bus engines to meet Clean Air Zone rules. Councilor Mitchell later questioned the apparent failure of the retrofitting efforts.
Andrew Whittles stated that the government spent £100 million nationally on bus retrofitting, with the intention that retrofitted buses would meet emissions standards. Meeting those standards would have allowed them to avoid paying the Clean Air Zone charge.
The retrofitting work was paused in April 2023 after retrofitted buses in some cities appeared ineffective. The government then reviewed the retrofitting scheme. However, the final report was not released until late 2024.
Whittles said the new government released the report, accusing the old government of “sat on”ing it. He suggested that Bradford’s retrofitted buses might be faulty, as two routes, Queens Road and Manchester Road, continue to have pollution problems.
Whittles said they had previously requested funding for electric buses, indicating they were aware of the retrofitting issue. However, they felt unable to take action because the government had the key report hidden from them.
However, there is some positive news: pollution on Manchester Road is improving. Data from December indicated that pollution levels had finally reached legal limits. Mitchell questioned if the situation constituted a “micro-scandal,” suggesting buses were polluting more but avoiding Clean Air Zone fines.
Mitchell raised concerns about fairness and transparency in the pollution controls. He questioned whether small firms were unfairly paying fines while large companies were causing illegal pollution. He compared the situation to the Volkswagen scandal, where VW cars cheated on emissions tests.
Whittles chose not to label the situation as a scandal but emphasized that the government must address the root causes. He clarified that bus companies followed government advice and attempted to improve bus emissions using government-approved plans.
The government provided Bradford in two rounds of funding. The city initially received £3.96 million, followed by an additional £1.4 million. “We wasted money on this government scheme,” Whittles declared.
Whittles concluded stating that the “scheme hasn’t worked properly”. He suggested that Bradford may have experienced an increase in pollution as a result. Due to the large number of retrofitted buses, Bradford was passed for electric bus funding, but the government has promised priority in the next funding round.