One London mother is singing the praises of the city's ultra-low emission zone, which has helped to improve her son's asthma symptoms.
"He's been in hospital many times and missed out on a lot of schooling because of it, it's been painful to see him gasping for breath," Ruth Fitzharris, a campaigner at Mums for Lungs, told Big Issue.
ULEZ was first implemented in central London in 2019 and requires drivers of certain polluting vehicles to pay a $16.34 (£12.50) daily charge. The policy was expanded to all of the city's boroughs in August 2023 with encouraging results. For one, levels of nitrogen dioxide dropped by 52% in central London and 21% in outer London in the year following the expansion.
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This is good news for Londoners — according to Big Issue, the city sees 4,000 premature deaths each year due to toxic air, and more than 250,000 children suffer from asthma.
Breathing in polluted air can contribute to health concerns including heart disease, ADHD, lung cancer, mood disorders, and hormonal issues. Plus, one study linked air pollution to infertility and other research has tied unhealthy air to dementia.
Antonia Jennings, CEO at Centre for London, told Big Issue, "Children can play more safely outdoors," thanks to ULEZ. "Those with respiratory (problems) can feel safer living in the capital without fears of their health deteriorating. All Londoners can breathe cleaner and fresher air."
Though Fitzharris is happy with the results of ULEZ so far, she told the publication there are still issues to address in the city.
"It really worries me that there is so much domestic wood burning in our neighborhood and still so many harmful diesel vehicles on the roads," she said. "I really hope that the government and the mayor will urgently take action on this before another generation of children lose the opportunity to have healthy lungs."
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