Greater Manchester Clean Air Plan - A575/A580 at Worsley and motorhomes/campervans

Overview

 A consultation on the inclusion of M1/M1 Special Purpose vehicles with a body type of ‘motorcaravan’ within the charging scheme & the sections of the A575 and A580 at Worsley within the Greater Manchester Clean Air Zone.

Why your views matter

Government is working with more than 60 local authorities across England to improve air quality. The ten Greater Manchester (GM) local authorities have been issued with a Government direction to introduce a Clean Air Plan to bring nitrogen dioxide (NO2) levels within legal limits in “the shortest possible time”.

Greater Manchester must take action to improve air quality, now and for future generations. Pollution from road traffic is linked to a wide range of serious illnesses and conditions. It contributes to the equivalent of around 1,200 deaths a year in GM alone.

As air pollution does not respect geographic boundaries, the ten GM local authorities (Bolton, Bury, Manchester, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Trafford, Tameside, Wigan) have come together to produce a joint plan to improve air quality in GM. This co-ordinated approach is seen as the most effective way to deal with a problem that affects all parts of GM and will not be remedied on a site-by-site or district-by-district basis. The GM CAP is being co-ordinated on behalf of the ten GM local authorities by Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM).

The core aim of the GM CAP is to reduce concentrations of NO2, which have been forecast to exceed the legal limits, “in the shortest possible time and by 2024 at the latest” in line with Government’s direction to GM.

Following an eight-week statutory consultation on the GM CAP proposals in 2020, the 10 GM local authorities have finalised their plan, with funding for non-compliant vehicles to upgrade available for residents and businesses in GM to apply for from November 2021 and a ‘Category C’ GM-wide Clean Air Zone anticipated to launch on 30 May 2022. The consultation findings and final plan report can be found here: cleanairgm.com/technical-documents/.

Whilst the final plan has been agreed, there are two issues that were raised in the feedback to the original consultation that now require a further consultation so that the ten GM local authorities can decide if they are to be included in the final plan. This further consultation intends to seek feedback on the impacts of:

• Including M1/ M1 Special Purpose vehicles with a body type of ‘motorcaravan’ within the charging scheme
   
• Including the sections of the A575 and A580 at Worsley within the GM Clean Air Zone

All the information on the GM Clean Air Plan, including a vehicle checker which will indicate whether your vehicle is liable for a charge, and the financial support available to upgrade non-compliant vehicles, can be found at cleanairgm.com/clean-air-plans/.