Story featured below: During my placement with Birmingham Television, I was given the opportunity to package my own news story. My editor Nick Dee helped me find an expert to interview on the topic of the clean air charge and how it is going to impact local taxi drivers.
Clean Air Charge
Birmingham has been rated as the most polluted city. With this fact, the council hopes to reduce air pollution by incorporating a Clean Air Zone (CAZ) charge to vehicles that are older and can potentially cause emission fuels to enter the air.
Drivers of high polluting cars will have to pay £8.
Because of this implementation by the city council to issue a Clean Air Zone charge, protests have emerged all over the West Midlands. For example, black cabs started a nine day “go slow” protest; in which, cab drivers will drive slowly through the city centre at peak times for two hours each day of the protest, but say they will call it off if the council agrees to reconsider this charge.
Craig Johnson, RMT Union, Midlands, says “The difficulty is that is the council shuts the door in our face and won’t get involved the negotiations with us, where do we go with it.”
Clean Air Zone news package featured below: I, Jessica Quinlan the reporter, explored further on the Clean Air Zone (CAZ) plan and how it is going to effect the locals of Birmingham.
