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The transport sector is a major contributor to UK emissions, making it a key area of change amidst the climate transition. In 2022, domestic transport accounted for 28% of total domestic emissions in the UK – with road transportation the main culprit.
There are many options being rolled out, or considered, to tackle emissions and provide wider benefits. Clean air zones, congestion charges, and ‘liveable neighbourhoods’, for instance, all have similar aims: to reduce air pollution, promote active travel, and/or incentivise more efficient vehicles in the areas where they are implemented.
But as with all green policies, public consent cannot be taken for granted.
Some of these measures receive in principle support, but face resistance from vocal minorities as they are rolled out. For instance, the expansion of London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) in 2023 was implicated in an unexpected by-election result in Uxbridge – pulling this into wider debates about net zero.
How is public opinion and political support influencing where (and how) these changes to our cities take shape?
Banks and GP surgeries are the most desired amenities that are currently not available within 15 minutes walk for Britons, according to YouGov polling in March 2023.
Whilst the concept of 15 minute neighbourhoods has become the focus of online conspiracy theories, and protests have taken place in some cities around the country, it is not yet clear how widespread this opposition is among the general public.
This survey would suggest that opposition to 15 minute neighbourhoods – when it is explained to survey respondents what the they mean – is limited.
Outlining the arguments in favour of clean air zones, this Green Alliance report notes that they are now found in over 250 cities across Europe, and that there is “comprehensive research demonstrating they work” to reduce car use and pollution, once in place.