SOME of Colchester’s most polluted roads are still breaking Government guidelines despite years of efforts to reduce traffic.

Last year, Colchester Council launched a public consultation to lower emissions as air pollution could be contributing to the deaths of more than 100 people in the town every year.

The worst roads last year were St John’s Street, Queen Street and Brook Street.

Now Osborne Street - where the new bus station is based - is now out - ranking them all in terms of air pollution.

The World Health Organisation’s maximum recommended level of nitrogen dioxide is 40μg/m3.

Figures from Colchester Council’s 2016 Air Quality Annual Status Report show in 2015, it was 50μg/m3.

It continues to rise from 43μg/m3 in 2011.

Other roads still exceeding recommended limits include Brook Street, St John’s Street and East Street.

Brook Street’s latest readings are 46μg/m3, St John’s Street is at 41μg/ m3 and East Street’s readings are at 41μg/m3.

These figures are despite the opening of the Park and Ride scheme in April 2015 which was aimed at reducing traffic in the town centre.

Green campaigner Mark Goacher said it was a serious problem.

He added: “There needs to be some kind of radical action to get levels down.

“You can sometimes taste the pollution in places like East Hill, it’s in a variety of locations.

“We think the council should be using the New Homes Bonus to invest in cleaning up buses, as one of the problems is there’s simply too many cars on the roads.”

From September 2014 bus lanes were also introduced in the High Street, and North Hill to allow them to keep moving and limit pollution.

The figures show since then emissions have reduced dramatically in North Hill, from 41μg/m3 in 2011 to 29μg/m3 in 2015.

However, groups like Cycle Colchester are still concerned about the effects on health.

The Government announced this week petrol and diesel fuelled cars would be banned in a bid to reduce emission.

A Colchester Council spokesman said: “Studies have shown that there is no single solution to improving air quality.

“Colchester Council’s Air Quality Action Plan outlines the series of measures it will take to reduce concentrations of pollutants to within legal limits, thereby positively impacting on the health and quality of life of Colchester’s residents and visitors.

“Whilst we are still awaiting the final figures for 2016, air quality in the borough is generally improving.

“However, we acknowledge that some areas remain stubbornly high and, therefore, we do need to continue to ensure air quality improvements are considered at every opportunity.

“One of the ways we’re doing this has been to look at planning policy to ensure new developments incorporate low-emission technology, including electric charging points for vehicles, and also make provision for essential journeys to work, healthcare and leisure activity by walking, cycling and sustainable low-emission methods of transport.”

Highlights of the council’s Air Quality Action Plan include the introduction of the borough’s low emission strategy, the Bus Emissions Project, a partnership project with First Essex, and an air quality forecasting service and alert system.