A stretch of the Westway has been fitted with ‘green screens’ to help filter out pollution.
A two-metre-high wall of ivy has been placed on the A40 elevated motorway running near Ladbroke Grove and Notting Hill, beside the Westway Trust Sports and Fitness Centre’s outdoor sports pitches , to improve the air quality.
It comes after Kensington and Chelsea Council secured funding for the project from Greater London Authority and Transport for London (TfL).
Currently, the ivy thinly covers its frame, but once mature it will block a significant amount of the pollution coming from traffic on the Westway slip road next to the sports pitches.
A similar screen installed at St Cuthbert with St Matthias School in Warwick Road near Earls Court was found to block more than a third (36%) of nitrogen dioxide and 40% of particulate material pollution originating from a busy adjacent road.
Cllr Tim Ahern, head of environment at the K&C said: “Following the installation of a green screen at one of our primary schools, the council approached the Westway Trust with the idea of locating one alongside the Westway’s outdoor sports pitches.
“We have spent over a year working with both TfL and the Westway Trust to get this project off the ground and are delighted that it has now been installed and we hope in time sports pitch users will benefit from reduced exposure to pollutants.”
And trust chief executive Angela McConville added: “The local community have expressed to us a fundamental desire to find ways to reduce pollution from the Westway so we’re delighted to be a part of this project.
“It’s great that users of the pitches and others will now have greater protection from emissions from the road.
“We will continue to work with the Royal Borough and TfL on future projects that will mitigate some of the problems that come from proximity to a major road.”
