Smoke nuisance from vehicles

Idling engines

If you allow your engine to run unnecessarily you damage the environment and increase air pollution. You will also waste fuel and money since leaving your engine running for more than 10 seconds uses more fuel than it would take to restart the engine.

There are instances where you might need to run your engine such as running a compactor on a refuse vehicle or to defrost a window in cold weather but in most cases idling your engine is unnecessary.

There are regulations which gives us the power to deal with idling engines, including buses and taxis idling at stands.  When we identify idling vehicles we will request drivers that drivers turn off their engines.  Where the driver refuses we have the power to issue a £20 fixed penalty notice to the driver.

Smoky vehicles

Diesel vehicles that are old or badly maintained can produce dark smoke or polluting fumes when drives.  These fumes contribute to poor air quality and can be harmful to health at high levels.

You can help us to improve air quality in Brent by reporting smoky vehicles when you see them. This applies to lorries, taxis, buses, coaches and other diesel public service vehicles but does not apply to cars. 

You can report the vehicle directly to Vehicle Operator and Services Agency (VOSA) by calling on 0300 123 9000 between 7.30am and 6pm weekdays or download the Smoky Vehicle Report Form and return it to VOSA.

We do not have the power to deal with smoky vehicles directly but can report smoky vehicles to VOSA on your behalf.  To make a report you will need to provide the following details:

• vehicle registration number
• type of vehicle (be as specific as possible)
• date smoky vehicle seen
• time smoky vehicle seen
• exact location vehicle was seen (road and town)
• name of vehicle's operator (company or owner)
• your name and address

What happens next?

Once VOSA have received your report they will write to the vehicle owner and give them a chance to fix the problem.  If they do not then VOSA have the power to take the vehicle off the road.

You will be asked to give your name and address and your contact details but this will be kept confidential.  This information is requested to prevent malicious reports. 

If you would like to know more about the vehicles, air quality or pollution in general you can contact us if you wish to to discuss any issues regarding pollution in detail.