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City of London bans purchase of diesel vehicles in sustainability drive

The air quality in and around the City of London could soon be significantly less polluted after the City of London Corporation announced a ban on the purchase of diesel vehicles for its business.

As part of a raft of new measures aimed at reducing air pollution in the Square Mile and beyond, the Corporation will cease purchasing diesel vehicles and will look to low and zero-emission vehicles when vehicles in its 300-strong fleet need replacing.

It comes after the City announced plans to extend London-wide a crackdown on drivers leaving their engines idling after successful trials in the City, and it also agree a deal with taxi hire firm Addison Lee to automatically switch its hybrid taxis to their electric mode when in certain areas of the City of London.

Chris Bell, Head of Procurement at the City of London Corporation, said: “This agreement is a major step forward in our drive to protect the millions of London tourists, workers and residents from air pollution.

“The City Corporation takes air quality extremely seriously. We are taking responsibility for the cleanliness of our fleet and encouraging the use of low and zero emission vehicles with our partners.

“It complements the work that we are doing to support many City businesses who are also cutting back on vehicle deliveries and using more hybrid vehicles.”

Air pollution has developed into something of a political crisis, after inaction on the issue by former mayor Boris Johnson has resulted in London’s air being some of the most polluted and toxic in the developed world.

Figures released last year by the Greater London Authority and Transport for London estimated that 9,500 Londoners die prematurely each year due to air pollution.

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