Bath and North East Somerset Council wants to make £195,000 by rolling out its “emissions-based” parking charges in Midsomer Norton and Keynsham.
The council's cabinet member for transport Manda Rigby said: "A lot of people who are on very low-income have no vehicle whatsoever and they are breathing in other people’s pollution.""Our aim is to improve air quality, reduce congestion and encourage other ways to travel across Bath and North East Somerset and these proposals would be another step in the right direction to achieve this.
The pay and display machines look up a vehicle’s emissions from the DVLA and charge based on how much carbon is emitted or, if this information is not available, the capacity of the engine. “They don’t want to; that’s what they have to drive to be able to get around to do their job, and you’re penalising them.”