A BID has been launched for Colchester to become the country’s first town to have exclusively electric buses.
Clean Air Colchester, a group set up to tackle pollution in the borough, wants Essex County Council to put the town forward for a Government funding scheme which would stop public transport being run on fossil fuels.
The group has launched a petition which has attracted hundreds of supporters.
In a statement, the group said: “The people of Colchester are desperate to address the air quality and traffic problem in the town but we need to give people a clean, effective and affordable alternative to car travel and this can be it.
“Our town would be a perfect place to set up this scheme.
“We have a very active community who are concerned about our residents’ health as well as our environment and have been campaigning for better air quality and traffic solution for a long time.
“We have a very active community who are concerned about our residents’ health as well as our environment and have been campaigning for better air quality and traffic solution for a long time.
“Colchester Council is also implementing a DEFRA-funded awareness raising and behaviour change project awarded as a result of the obvious need and interest locally.
“As the town is developed and spreads at an unprecedented rate, we need clean public transport options to replace the dirty old buses that currently belch out toxic pollution.”
British Heart Foundation research last year revealed breathing in Colchester’s air is the equivalent to smoking 123 cigarettes every year.
Pollution hotspots include Brook Street, High Street, St John’s Street, Osborne Street, Mersea Road and Lucy Lane at the A12.
The town’s narrow Roman roads trap pollutants and increase the volume of harmful gases.
To sign up, visit you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/make-colchester-the-first-all-electric-bus-town
