• I AM sorry to hear of the problems Kenny Irish is having with getting his scrappage fee from the ULEZ, ultra low emission zone, scheme, perhaps he was a bit hasty getting rid of his old van before the funding was in place, (I’m fuming over Khan’s ULEZ scrappage scheme, August 3).

But I hope the now properly funded scheme will compensate him a little.

But I am appalled by Sir Keir Starmer’s response to the election defeat in Uxbridge and South Ruislip – clearly attributed to Tory lies about the scheme – does he have a solid opinion on anything?

And Cllr Danny Beales’s attitude was cynical backsliding on this issue: he is a representative of the people of Camden Town where pollution is responsible for shaving a year off their lives, as compared with those in the countryside where pollution levels are lower. So whose side is he on?

But, rather than slagging off all the others with opinions on the topic, I shall stick to the facts.

1. We know that pollution kills: the Royal College of Physicians says: “each year in the UK, around 40,000 deaths are attributable to exposure to outdoor air pollution. It has been linked to increases in cancer, asthma, stroke and heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and dementia.

“The health costs add up to more than £20 billion every year.”

So we must do all we can to reduce levels on the streets where we live, and the ULEZ scheme is a minor step along that road: aiming to get rid of the most polluting vehicles, mostly old bangers like Mr Irish’s van (and his newer one by the sound of it!).

2. We also know that pollution from transport accounts for around 30 per cent of global carbon emissions, and 72 per cent of these emissions come from road transportation – from cars, vans, lorries, buses and other road vehicles. This includes nitrous oxides and particulates.

3. Then when you can clearly show that most car use involves shipping one person a couple of miles, perhaps with a kid on board for part of the journey, it becomes clear how stupid the situation is: we need to do all we can to cut car use.

Of course, it’s easy for me to say that, I am long retired and not a car user any more; I live close to a tube station and major bus routes, and am still just about fit enough to walk to them.

But if even half the amount of money spent on cars was given to London transport, it could be free for all; and taxis for those with mobility issues could be funded, while investment in developing express routes from outer suburbs could slash journey times dramatically, especially if cars are not clogging the roads. Cars sit at the roadside for over 95 per cent of the time, clogging up our roads day and night.

And electric cars will not affect the pollution numbers much, their tyres pollute the air just as badly, possibly more so since they are heavier. In addition, their batteries use many exotic materials which, as well as being in short supply, are causing all sorts of political and environmental issues around the world.

And the pollution reductions from electric cars only apply to their local use; the energy they use is generating pollution elsewhere, and plenty of it: for a start, over a third of the electrical power generated is lost simply in the transmission process. And the weight of cars with massive batteries means they need more energy to move.

Cars kill over 1,500 people a year and cause 128,209 casualties of all severities as well. The car must go, the sooner the better for all of us even those drivers sitting honking their horns in the stupid traffic jams they are creating.

DAVID REED
Eton Avenue, NW3