A petition objecting to ultra-low emission zones (ULEZ) and low-traffic neighbourhoods (LTNs) is due to go before councillors for debate this week.
The petition, started by local election candidate Laura King, was presented to Brighton and Hove City Council in July.
The petition did not attract enough signatures to trigger a debate at the meeting of the full council.
But more than 2,000 people have now signed the petition, asking the council to scrap any proposals for ULEZ and LTNs because legally owned vehicles would have passed their emissions tests.
The petition said:
“Brighton and Hove is not a high-emissions industrial city but a breezy seaside city – and (a ULEZ is) discriminatory to those who can least afford it – ie, sole traders and single mothers.
“Moreover, vehicles are already moving over to EV (electric vehicles), rendering all such schemes unjustifiable. Please scrap them.”
Ms King presented her petition to councillors in the summer and it was “noted”. While councillors did not respond formally at the meeting, her comments were well-received by many in attendance.
She said:
“In view of the applause which greeted my petition presentation from both the council chamber and public gallery alike, I just hope that common sense will prevail.”
She added that she hoped that councillors would quash “this poverty policy to punish the people of Brighton and Hove for trying to get around and earn a living, not to mention drive our visitors away”.
“It has,” she said, “no evidence-based foundation and there is no place for a London copy and paste scheme in Brighton and Hove.”
The prospect of a ULEZ scheme had been aired by the council before Labour won the local elections and could have been considered alongside moves to bring in a car-free area.
During the election campaign, the Green manifesto included proposals for a London-style ULEZ to create a liveable city centre.
Outside the full council meeting in July, Labour councillor Trevor Muten, who chairs the council’s Transport and Sustainability Committee, said that there were no plans for a Brighton and Hove ULEZ.
This month, the committee killed off the Hanover and Tarner “liveable neighbourhood” project – a low-traffic neighbourhood scheme.
Instead of the original scheme, the council has agreed a limited project to bring in extra crossings and safety measures along Elm Grove and Queen’s Park Road.
The petition is due to be discussed at the full council meeting that is due to start at 4.30pm on Thursday 19 October at Hove Town Hall. The meeting is scheduled to be webcast on the council’s website.
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