Drivers in south west London who leave their engines idling could face £100 fines, in a bid to slash air pollution.

Richmond Council is considering introducing a Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) across the borough to tackle idling vehicles.

Drivers caught leaving the engine of a parked or stationary vehicle running on any public highway in Richmond would be fined £100, or £50 if paid within a given timeframe, under the order.

The Council's regulatory committee will decide whether to launch a public consultation on the plans on Tuesday, 3 June.

While it is already illegal to leave vehicle engines running when parked, the council said this legislation is "practically unenforceable" as the driver can only be fined if they refuse to turn off their engine when asked by an enforcement officer and must then provide their details.

The Council has only issued one fine for vehicle idling since 2019, despite enforcement officers making an average of 10,000 interventions every year.

The PSPO would instead allow enforcement officers to automatically slap offending drivers with a fixed penalty notice (FPN) after turning on their body-worn cameras and watching them for two minutes.

If the motorist refused to provide their details or drove off, the officer would search for their details using the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) database to issue the fine.

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A new report by council officers said the authority needed to crackdown on idling vehicles as they have a major impact on air pollution.

An idling engine can produce up to twice the emissions of a car in motion, it said, including carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter.

The report said: "Idling vehicles continue to be a major concern in the borough, with around 10,000 interventions made by civil enforcement officers (CEOs) each year. Despite this approach, the figures for idling in the borough remain consistently high and if the council are to achieve its new ambitious air quality objectives, then we must consider what alternative actions are available to start to influence this unnecessary polluting behaviour."

The council's regulatory committee will vote on whether to launch a 10-week public consultation on introducing the PSPO on 3 June.

It would then consider the feedback and decide whether to implement the order.

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