Warwick mayor joins official launch for group looking to improve air quality in town

A group of residents who are trying to improve the air quality in Warwick are celebrating the official launch of their group.

Cllr Terry Morris, the Mayor of Warwick, recently joined resident Jon Grey to mark the official launch Clean Air Warwick.

Clean Air Warwick was formed at the start of the year by a group of residents concerned at the increasing amounts of traffic in the town and the impact this was having on air quality.

“Residents have been talking about traffic levels in Warwick for a long time” said Jon. “As the population of the town has gone up with the house building programme, Warwick traffic levels have increased year on year.

"Like many historic towns, the main road structure was laid out long before the motor vehicle was conceived and it is just not possible to expand it in line with the ever increasing number of vehicles.

“In most towns like Warwick an effective ring road or bypass has been created to keep as much traffic out of the places where people live but for whatever reason this has not happened with Warwick so that more and more traffic is trying to squeeze into the same limited set of roads, causing congestion and poor air quality.”

The group is focused on pushing for changes that make it easier to complete shorter journeys in other ways rather than just jumping in the car.

“Everyone noticed the real improvements in air quality during lockdown and it prompted people to consider more active travel for shorter journeys like walking or cycling” said Jon. “For this to continue we need better cycleways that are separate from the road and pedestrians so that people feel safe to make that trip by bike.

"New government advice was launched in the summer promoting the need for better cycleways and we are pleased that Warwickshire County Council has announced a plan for Emscote Road that reflects this new guidance; we are hopeful that the new road plan for Warwick Town Centre will also include dedicated cycle routes through the town centre to enable even more by bike to be made safely."

As well as highlighting cycleway improvements, other areas where the new group is active include working with schools and the larger local organisations to understand what is needed to help them reduce their traffic impact and also to look at a bus pilot that can make travel by bus more affordable and convenient as a real alternative to making local trips by car.

Cllr Terry Morris added: “As the Town Council we are pleased to support Clean Air Warwick as they are a group of local residents focused on making the town a better place to live.

"They are working to come up with constructive solutions to reduce the amount of congestion in Warwick and I think we can all agree any improvements here will be most welcome.”

Anyone looking to join Clean Air Warwick can do so by contacting Jon and the team via the group's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/cleanairwarwick