Last night, Epsom and Ewell Borough Council’s Environment Committee agreed to revoke the Ewell High Street Air Quality Management Area (AQMA), following a sustained and significant improvement in nitrogen dioxide levels recorded in Ewell High Street.

The AQMA was put in place in June 2007 after a section of Ewell High Street was found to exceed the nationally determined objective for nitrogen dioxide. The main source for these pollutants in the borough was identified as being due to road traffic.

In the intervening years, the council has worked with the Highways Authority to deliver actions to combat congestion in the area, including: the disapplication of certain marked roadside parking bays during peak times, widening the carriageway and re-engineering the junction between the High Street and Cheam Road.

Councillor Liz Frost, Chair of the Environment Committee, said:

“It is fantastic news that air quality along Ewell High Street has improved sufficiently to warrant lifting the Air Quality Management Area designation. Reducing nitrogen dioxide emissions has been extremely important for the council as these can contribute to negative impacts on the environment and on our health.

“This revocation is a testament to the work of both Epsom & Ewell Borough Council and our partners in the area, as well as interventions that have taken place both regionally and nationally to tackle nitrogen dioxide emissions”