Winds of change

With 37 cities repeatedly recording illegal levels of NO₂, the United Kingdom’s air quality record is bad and, in London, over two million people live in areas where air pollution levels are above the legal limit.

There is no healthy level of NO₂.

As recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO), European law limits NO₂ in the air to an hourly average of 40 micrograms per cubic metre (μg per m³)—or any regular spikes in extreme levels of NO₂—and any measurement above 40μg per m³ gets a ‘significant pollution’ rating.

The Central Office of Public Interest (COPI) is a non-profit campaign organisation that has created www.addresspollution.org—an air quality rating website using KCL-sourced data. For each address, the website gives an air pollution rating of one to five, with ‘five’ showing the air pollution is at least 50% above the legal limit.

Affluent Chelsea and Westminster are areas with air pollution above 80μg per m³. This level of toxicity leads to a 33% increased risk of disease-related mortality. Southwark was the worst postcode area with a nitrogen dioxide measurement of over 102μg per m³. It’s in these boroughs where the COPI is targeting homebuyers with billboards that read: ‘These houses cost an arm, leg, and lung’ and ‘Location, Location, Lung Disease’.

COPI are advising homebuyers and renters demand discounts of up to 20% to live in the areas with the worst air quality—which could cut property prices across the capital may drop by up to £256,000 in Chelsea, £146,000 in Islington, and £66,000 in Tower Hamlets.

A study showed 76% of the London’s residents say that discounts should apply to properties available to buy or rent in neighbourhoods where the air quality violates the legal limit and where they’re at greater risk of experiencing related health issues.

‘”Air pollution is killing people across the country, and London is worst hit—but people don’t believe it will affect them personally”

“Air pollution is killing people across the country, and London is worst hit—but people don’t believe it will affect them personally.”

“‘The Air Quality Rating is a tool to change these perceptions and shows just how real, and dangerous, air pollution is across the capital, including in some of the wealthiest neighbourhoods.”

Those fashionable addresses include Notting Hill, Regent’s Park, and The Mall where, if you don’t find yourself among their high-rolling residents such as Daniel Craig, David Beckham, and the royal family, you can guarantee you’ll be amid very polluted air.

Milles added:

“I urge every Londoner to check the Air Quality Rating for their address, get informed and take action.”

Frank Kelly, Professor of Environmental Health at KCL, said:

‘Many people don’t learn about air pollution levels and the health consequences until after they have suffered its effects.’

Studies have shown nitrogen dioxide levels above 40μg per m³ to lead to an 11% increased risk of disease-related mortality.

Evidence also shows links between NO₂ exposure and decreased life expectancy, anxiety, asthma; Autism, cancer, dementia; Depression, erectile dysfunction, infertility; Miscarriage, obesity, psychosis, and slow childhood development.

There are 36,000 deaths each year because of air pollution, costing us £20billion each year in healthcare. A further 29,000 people die with air pollution-related illnesses such as cancer, chronic lung disease, and diabetes.

The WHO says humans shouldn’t expose themselves to levels exceeding 200μg per m³ for anything over 18 hours a year but the air quality sensor on the Strand passed this limit 20 times by July of this year.

‘With an Air Quality rating for every house in the country using the latest data provided by King’s, this will enable the public to better understand the air quality at their own front door, and equip them with an understanding of how best to improve their local air quality,’ added Professor Kelly.

Cloudy with a chance of…a discount?

In August we learned that the Autumn Budget may bring fuel duty cuts of 2ppl, which, while great for the motorist, isn’t consistent with improving environmental pollution caused by car emissions.

Only a week before we told you about ‘Emission Impossible?’—a report by a conservative think tank calling on the government to reduce air pollution by not only stopping the freeze on the value of fuel duty but to apply a surcharge on fuel duty for diesel fuel.

By law, estate agents must declare material issues to you, that could affect the price of a property you’re looking to buy. Yet, with air pollution, the matter—pardon the pun—becomes cloudy.

Because the argument exists that air isn’t a material issue, estate agents need not make you aware that it might be a problem and may damage the health of you and your family, etc.

Although estate agents exist who say it’s inevitable that declaring air quality ratings will become an industry standard, in the meantime, if you’re looking to buy a property in London (or anywhere, because the website is rolling out the service to the rest of the UK), remember, the air quality information is now public and can help you negotiate on the price.

Tip of the iceberg

With that said, some of the conditions seem impractical to self-declare – low blood sugar, sleepiness and even déjà vu, and some seem … like they were written in the 70s; you need to self-declare a hysterectomy, or caesarean section (and they’re listed separately to ‘Surgery’, the assumption being that they’re not talking recent).

“You can be fined up to £1,000 if you don’t tell the DVLA about a medical condition that affects your driving, but is that really a strong enough deterrent?”

“With so many of us reliant on our cars for work and pleasure, there will be drivers on the road who think it’s worth the risk to keep quiet because handing in their driving licence could mean losing their mobility, their job and not seeing their family and friends.”

New drivers

On the face of it, a graduated licence could make sense – any 17-year-old with enough money could (in theory) learn to drive, pass their test and jump straight in to a 700+hp supercar without any further training or education, but that’s not what Brake are calling for.

If you ride a motorcycle, you’ll be aware that there are graduated licences (that restrict horsepower and engine capacity), and even before you get anywhere near a road, you have to undertake a Compulsory Basic Training (CBT) course, but no such thing exists for cars.

It could be argued that learning to drive has never been easier – certain elements have been removed from the test, to be replaced with tasks such as checking the screenwash fluid, and of course, new technology means that testing dexterity (like a hill-start) is also a thing of the past.

Don’t fall foul of self-declaration

To be on the safe side, you should check whether your illness should or could be declared by you – you could face a £1,000 fine, be prosecuted if you’re involved in an accident as a result of the problem, and in some cases, your insurance could be invalid if caught driving with a known medical problem.

If you do find yourself in the position of having your licence removed, all is not lost; you can reapply for a driving licence once your doctor agrees that you meet the medical standards. Voluntarily surrendering your licence is slightly different: you can still drive while you renew the licence if you have the support of your doctor, a valid licence, that you only drive under the conditions of the previous licence, that you haven’t been disqualified or your licence revoked and the application is less than 12-months old.

Rock on!

Researchers found that those listening to light or no music changed lanes up to 70 times in an hour, whereas those who listened to rock music changed lanes up to 140 times an hour. The latter also went about 5mph faster and in some cases 10mph.

Those who listened to light music drove comparably to those who had no music on.

“Rock music is often characterised as having a fast tempo and high sound volume . . . The findings are useful for the development of effective driver education strategies — in particular, a publicity programme that could enhance public awareness of the negative impact of music listening on driving performance.” – Qiang Zen (co-author of the study)

Volume up or volume down?

Top five most dangerous songs

1. “American Idiot” – Green Day
2. “Party in the USA” – Miley Cyrus
3. “Mr Brightside” – The Killers
4. “Don’t Let Me Down” – The Chainsmokers
5. “Born to Run” – Bruce Springsteen

Top five safest songs

1. “Stairway to Heaven” – Led Zeppelin
2. “Under the Bridge” – Red Hot Chili Peppers
3. “God’s Plan” – Drake
4. “Africa” – Toto
5. “Location” – Khalid

Safe drive, stay alive

Making the right choices in what you listen to is important. If you use Spotify, Apple Music or any other music streaming service, why not create a driving playlist? Choose songs that have a similar BPM to a heartbeat, which sits between approximately 60-100BPM, as this is what experts say is best.

Chartered psychologist Dr Simon Moore says, “Fast music can cause excitement and arousal that can lead people to concentrate more on the music than the road. In addition, a fast tempo can cause people to subconsciously speed up to match the beat of the song”.

According to Dr Moore, the optimum tempo of a song for safe driving should mimic the human heartbeat. The safest songs for the road are within 60-100 bpm and not too extreme in energy in either direction (not too much and not too little).

If you’re a radio fan, then Smooth Radio or Classic FM is the best as the general BPM and energy was soothing. Beware Radio X, Heart or Absolute Radio as these had the highest proportion of ‘dangerous’ songs according to Moneybarn. They took a random sample of 15 songs from the most popular UK radio stations to see which had the highest number of dangerous songs.

Electronic handbrakes

In an age of connectivity, smart cars and electrification, manufacturers are looking toward improving systems and processes even further. Certainly, there isn’t much wrong with the traditional handbrake, but as a system, it’s crude and offers little innovation – essentially, the handbrake has remained unchanged since its introduction.

There are a number of reasons why the manufacturers are pushing toward electronic systems, not only does it free up space in the cabin, and remove the unsightly lever, but they also offer built-in safety features – no more slipping (or even forgetting), automatic hill-start assist, automatically disengaging when pulling away, and of course, it can’t be applied while on the move. Sorry kids.

Cost cutting

The first electronic parking brake was fitted to a 7 Series BMW in 2001, but of course as with any technology, as it becomes more widely adopted, the prices plummet, and it becomes more affordable. Given that it uses servo motors and intelligent control (so must have some form of ECU), the price of the electronic brake would outweigh the cost of a traditional brake, but they’re easier to fit, and in theory, shouldn’t need any maintenance above the regular servicing, so the overall price differential isn’t that great.

There may also be an element of allowing the manufacturer to lower the specification of other components – think of the clutch for example; if automatic hill-assist takes care of the dreaded hill start, there should be a drop in the number of drivers that ride the clutch while they wait to move off.

But we shouldn’t forget that the same as prices coming down, new technology usually has some inherent faults that have been unforeseen.

Volkswagen recall

Back in 2017, Volkswagen had to recall 134,000 UK models from the Golf, Touran, Tiguan and Passat range for problems with their handbrakes, Tesla recalled 53,000 cars worldwide to fix problems with their system, and Toyota, Renault and Audi have all had to recall models at some point for handbrake problems.

While electronic handbrakes do have their positives, you’d have to say that if there’s a problem with incorrect tensioning, there’s very little you can do – it’s not like you can just pull on the lever a little harder. Equally, if it fails to engage, or even disengage, no amount of scrabbling around underneath the vehicle will help you – it’s a trip to a main dealer, or a well-appointed independent garage with a diagnostic machine.

The future of driving

It would seem that this is just another small step to the future of autonomous driving – one less thing that new drivers will have to learn, another process that’s moving toward the car taking complete control of the driving process, albeit in small steps.

We’ve already reported on the fact that intelligent cars will monitor, and if necessary, adjust your speed if you’re driving too fast, and that newer cars have the ability to spy on you and report back, and while a great deal of these features have come about for safety or convenience, you can’t help feeling that the art of driving, is slowly dying, and I believe we’re already seeing the repercussions.

All too often, we see drivers that use a car purely as a means of transportation, that give no thought to situational awareness, driving conditions, or other drivers; automatic emergency braking systems mean that drivers don’t need to be as aware, lane-assist stops them wandering between lanes, blind spot systems stop them from pulling out into traffic approaching them from behind, and in-car entertainment systems with full connectivity and Wi-Fi means distractions are plenty.

I’m not advocating a roll-back to steam power and a man with a red flag, but just as many F1 drivers say that it’s now too safe for enjoyment, you may just start to think about hanging on to your current, pre-safety conscious car just that little bit longer.

Do you think driving standards are slipping? Do these safety systems lessen the skill needed to drive properly? Let us know in the comments.

Lane confusion

Although there is some outdated evidence that smart motorways can help with congestion, the primary factor behind them is of course, financial. A smart motorway is around 60% cheaper than traditional widening, so despite the very real safety concerns over smart motorways, it seems that they’re the preferred choice of the authorities.

Cashing in

It’s thought that around £41m has been raised by the use of smart motorways, purely through fining drivers for speeding and lane-infringement wrongdoings – using a lane when it’s closed.

No one argues that lane discipline is crucial to the safety of all motorists, workers, & breakdowns etc, but there needs to be more done to offer sanctuary to the stranded motorist; breaking down (during off-peak hours) on a smart motorway has been proven to be 216% more dangerous than on a conventional motorway.

The three-lane squeeze

Of course in the age of swingeing budget cuts, authorities must do all they can to save money, many local authorities are now implementing ‘spend to save’ programmes, but it does seem as though factoring in revenue from fines has become the norm so it’s unlikely that there will be a let-up in processing misdemeanours, and as we learnt before, this could be anything from a noisy car, through to distracted driving.

The rise of technology on our roads is a double-edged sword; on the one hand, it does help to protect the public from menacing drivers, or those drivers that see a car as purely a means of getting from A to B, with little thought or minimal input along the way, but the downside is that driving a car is becoming increasingly fraught with concerns over minor indiscretions with motoring laws, including speeding.
We’ve known for many a year that motorists are seen as the easy cash cow for bulking up the coffers, and that situation is only going to get worse, under the guise of ‘safety technology’. But at what point does safety end, and pure money-grabbing begin?

Where will these non-discretionary cameras lead us to? And how much impact will they have on the pastime of ‘motoring’? It could be argued that while they’re adding to road safety, they’re also dumbing down common sense, and driving skills, and of course, they’ll have a detrimental impact on the pleasure of driving – people just driving for the love of driving.

The modern way

Sticking by the rules

The statement comes as ministers intensify their preparations before the planned 31st of October departure date.

After Brexit, if you’re a driver from England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, or Wales, and you visit Ireland, you’d better make sure you’ve remembered to buy and affix a GB sticker to your motor if you want to gain entry.

The advice applies to all UK-registered cars, including those from Northern Ireland. No longer will it be adequate for your number plate to show the GB letters against a blue background. When we and the EU go our separate ways, the demand from Ireland that we display our stickers becomes compulsory as a condition under the 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic.

Regarding an International Driving Permit (IDP), which is a permit that allows you to drive in countries where a UK licence isn’t enough, if you own a UK licence, you won’t need one to drive in Ireland. Even if the UK leaves without a deal, unless your visit to Ireland lasts for over 12 months, only then will you need an IDP.

It’s worth noting too, that if you get disqualified from driving while you’re in Ireland, you might also find yourself banned once you’re back home.

Bordering on ridiculous

Williams said:

‘While it might seem ridiculous that this will no longer be enough to let authorities know a vehicle is registered in the UK, the latest advice from the government is clear.

‘Anyone travelling to an EU country, including the Republic of Ireland, must display a separate white oval GB sticker on the rear of their vehicle.’

The RAC recommends that motorists prepare for further changes to the rules on overseas motoring, saying everything depends on what situations arise after Brexit and the deal we make (if any).

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) said that neglecting to display a GB sticker wouldn’t invalidate our motor insurance but still advised that we follow all the insurance conditions.

Prepare the way

You can apply for an IDP at the Post Office by taking along your full, valid, UK driving licence photocard, a passport standard photograph showing your recent, true likeness, and £5.50 for the application fee (payable with cash or by debit or credit card).

If you only hold an older paper licence, you must take with you your valid passport as proof of identification.

You could once apply to motoring organisations such as the RAC for IDPs but this stopped on the 1st of February this year. This means, if we have a no-deal Brexit, it’ll be more difficult to get a permit than it had before February.

If you need an IDP for Ireland, you’ll want the 1949 convention IDP, which is valid for 12 months and also covers you in Cyprus, Malta, and Spain. For anywhere else in the EU, you’ll need a 1968 IDP—valid for either three years or for as long your driving licence is valid (whichever is shortest).

Driving licence requirements vary across the world, so if you plan to rent a vehicle and you book in advance while in the UK, either ask the car rental company to confirm the driving licence requirements of the country you’re visiting or get an IDP as a precaution.

Remember, it’s our responsibility as drivers to check with the specific country’s driving authority about a country’s particular rules on driving.

Qashqai falling short

Nissan is aware of this issue and switched its battery supplier back in 2018, but there is still potential for around 60,000 people if not more who could be affected by this. As the batteries are lead-acid, this has huge ramifications for the environment due to the way they are disposed of. Car batteries have to be disposed of in certain ways, and someone who doesn’t hold a certificate can be prosecuted for trying to recycle or dispose of them.

The Qashqai also had an issue on it’s Body Control Module affecting cars built between April 2018 and February 2019, which Nissan say they have created an update and campaign for, but there are most likely cars out there that are still affected.

Nissan said “We’re aware of some incidences of battery failure and have taken steps to address this issue, including replacing our battery supplier, and voluntarily launching a campaign to update the Body Control Module software on Qashqais made between April 2018 and February 2019. We’re working with affected customers.”

It’s a Tesla nightmare!

One in ten Tesla Model X owners also reported faults, which Which? Attributes to an inherent design flaw. Across all brands surveyed Tesla had the highest percentage of cars in the three to eight-year bracket reporting faults, with 67% of owners affected by some fault.

Tesla said “We review every vehicle before it leaves the factory. Our warranties cover any repairs and replacements necessary for door handles for up to four years. Unlike other manufacturers, Tesla can perform repair work via mobile service, which can be done at a customer’s home or office.”

More issues uncovered

Seat said: Seat UK is concerned but, without details, we can’t identify and explain these results. A comprehensive warranty covering three years/60,000 miles is provided. Our service data will identify the need for workshop campaigns, which are issued as promptly as possible.

Older car models like the Ford B-Max also reported alarmingly high fault rates. 25% of automatic B-Max owners said they had a problem with their “Powershift” automatic transmission system.

Ford said: We’re aware of these issues and have previously updated our dealership network to resolve them for customers. We also extended the warranty for affected cars from three to five years/60,000 to 100,00 miles. Where owners aren’t covered, our Ford customer relationship centre (see ford.co.uk) will assess each individually on a favourable goodwill basis.

Similarly, nearly a quarter of BMW 5 Series Touring drivers said they had experienced a number of issues with their suspension.

BMW said: BMW conducts continuous quality surveillance of our in-market vehicles. Only a tiny fraction of customer contacts in the first half of 2019 were related to suspension issues of any kind; fewer than six in 10,000, across all our models, make any reference to suspension issues. If any customer wishes to discuss concerns, they can call BMW Customer Service.

Hefty motoring bills

Which? Are calling for manafacturers to go public with these faults and issue a recall for the cars affected. While some issues are not fatal, it is at the best interest of the company to fix these issues and do so for free, according to Which?

Natalie Hitchins, Which? Head of Home Products and Services, said:

“It is concerning that it has taken Which?’s survey of thousands of motorists to uncover what are in some cases inherent flaws with some of the UK’s best-selling cars. Owners should be able to trust that manufacturers will make them aware of these issues and offer a fix when they see a recurring problem.”

“It is vital these manufacturers make the public aware of these serious faults and ensure vehicle owners are not left out of pocket should the issues occur outside their warranty.”