Free park and ride travel will be on offer in Chester to support this year’s Clean Air Day on Thursday, June 21.

Clean Air Day organisers say they are asking us all to do our bit to clean up the air around us on the longest day of the year.

Cheshire West and Chester Council’s park and ride service itself uses buses which are said to have ‘more environmentally friendly ‘enviro-clear’ engine technology’.

Borough environment chief Cllr Karen Shore (Lab, Ellesmere Port Whitby) said: “There are lots of simple things we can all do to improve air quality and look after our own and other people’s health.

“Clean Air Day is a chance to find out more about air pollution, share information with friends and colleagues, and help make the air cleaner and healthier for everyone.

“So, on June 21, leave the car at home and walk, cycle or take public transport instead.”

She added: “If you’re travelling in Chester, Clean Air Day is an ideal opportunity to try the park and ride for free if you’ve never given it a go before.”

Park and ride locations, routes, and timetables can be found on the council’s website.

Aerial view the Upton Park and Ride site
Aerial view of the Upton Park and Ride site

Tips we can all use to help clean up the air around us include:

Try ways to use the car less.

If you have children at school, talk to other parents to make a better school run.

Car sharing or a walking bus often reduces traffic at the school gate by 30%, said to be ‘a sure fire way to make the air cleaner for children’.

With cars, vans and lorries described as being ‘responsible for so much air pollution’, low-emission electric vehicles are the future it is suggested and their costs over a lifetime are cheaper than you might think.

So when you upgrade your car, explore an electric, hybrid or liquid petroleum gas (LPG) model to save on your road tax too.

If you have to drive, avoid engine idling. Turning a vehicle’s engine off while stationary protects the health of people in the car behind and on the pavement.

Wood-burning stoves look great and they’re so cosy but burning wood produces a lot of air pollutants.

To minimise your contribution to air pollution buy a Defra-approved stove, use authorised fuel, and only light it when you really have to.

Clean Air Day is organised by the national charity, Global Action Plan, whose website at www.cleanairday.org.uk has a wide range of advice to help communities, schools and workplaces to improve air quality.

To follow on from the day, the council’s environmental health officers are working with Global Action Plan to organise an electric vehicle information event in the borough.

This will be held in front of Chester Town Hall on Wednesday, July 25 when there will be a range of electric vehicles on display, experts on hand to answer questions and the opportunity to book test drives.

The council’s low emission strategy to tackle air pollution in the borough is currently being finalised following a public consultation and will be launched in the autumn.

It includes details of the council’s plans to install charging points for electric vehicles across the borough to encourage the use of low emission vehicles.