Government air quality targets are still not being met in Oxford city centre.

On June16, the city council's environment scrutiny committee agreed to establish a joint working group with the county council in a bid to reduce pollution caused by exhaust fumes.

The level of nitrogen dioxide -- which is less harmful than carbon monoxide -- in Queen Street is almost twice the Government limit. George Street, High Street and Park End Street also exceed the limit.

The council has been told to meet the target of 40 micrograms per cubic metre by 2005.

Now, a series of measures are being implemented in a bid to reduce pollution caused by vehicle exhausts.

These include:

Asking bus companies to switch their engines off while stationary in the city centre

Using bus gates in High Street, Magdalen Street, George Street, Castle Street and New Road, to keep out other traffic

Imposing vehicle emission standards on all streets on bus priority routes.

Scrunity committee chairman Jean Fooks said the removal of buses from Queen Street, which could happen once the Westgate Centre was redeveloped, would be a major step forward.

She added: "The Oxford Transport Strategy brought some improvements, although it did produce one or two new hotspots."

An Air Quality Management Area, which covers the city centre and major routes into it, is being extended to widen monitoring. It will include St Clement's as far as Morrell Avenue, Cowley Road from The Plain to Divinity Road, the east side of St Giles as far as Woodstock Road, and a longer stretch of St Aldate's.

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