Lung health improvement linked to ULEZ in London
Restrictions on older, more polluting vehicles in London are “strongly” associated with improved lung health in children, according to a new study, reports BritPanorama.
Researchers found that enhancements in air quality following the 2019 introduction of London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) contributed to better lung growth, which had previously been hindered by air pollution. This research was led by a team from Queen Mary University of London (QMUL).
“We already knew that the ULEZ reduced air pollution but now we know that children’s lung health has improved at the same time, which is a really important finding for children and parents living in London,” stated study lead author Helen Wood, a research fellow at QMUL.
The ULEZ imposes a 24-hour, seven days a week charge of £12.50 ($17) for vehicles that fail to meet strict emissions standards. Initially covering the inner city, the zone expanded in August 2023 to include outer boroughs and suburbs.
The study tracked over 3,400 children aged 6 to 9 from 84 different schools in London and Luton, a town about 30 miles north of the capital, from 2018 to 2022. Luton, serving as a control site, has a similar mix of traffic pollutants but no ULEZ. Initially, children in London were found to have “significantly” smaller lung capacity compared to their peers in Luton.
Through five years of annual assessments, researchers measured the children’s lung size and health, revealing significant improvement following the ULEZ implementation. London children’s lung conditions recovered to levels similar to those found in Luton.
During the study, the proportion of children with clinically impaired lung function decreased from 14% to 9% in London, contrasting with a fall from 9% to 7% in Luton. While Luton didn’t implement a clean air zone, local authorities reduced speed limits and developed cycling and walking networks to enhance air quality during the study period.
Children whose lung development is impaired by early adulthood face heightened risks of respiratory issues such as asthma and COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), along with cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. Researchers noted that the study’s results imply that improvements in lung health can have profound long-term benefits for children.
This marks the first evidence suggesting that clean air zones, now established in various cities globally, may positively impact child development.
“Air pollution is a global issue. If we want to improve the lives of children living in high-traffic urban environments, we need bold and ambitious measures,” said Ian Mudway, associate professor in the School of Public Health at Imperial College London.
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, who introduced the ULEZ in 2019, faced significant opposition to the initiative from all major UK political parties. In a recent op-ed, he referred to implementing the ULEZ as “my hardest decision as mayor,” asserting that the initiative has been pivotal in improving air quality and the health of children in London.
Striking findings
Stephen Burgess, a professor of biostatistics at Cambridge University who was not involved in the study, noted that he had approached the research “with a high level of scepticism.”
“My expectation was that the ULEZ regulations would have little measurable impact on child health,” he remarked. “However, the findings are striking,” he added, while cautioning that factors such as pollution reduction during the Covid-19 pandemic could also have contributed to improved lung function.
Kevin McConway, emeritus professor of applied statistics at the Open University, acknowledged the study’s implications but emphasized that it does not definitively prove a causal link between ULEZ and lung function improvement.
The study was published in the journal “The Lancet Public Health.”
