Car Sick BBC Scotland Investigates

Rush hour on the M8.

In the '60s, the motorway promised a fast,

stress-free journey to the future.

But today, Scotland's most important artery is clogged.

The prescription - bypass surgery.

Across the country, we're in the midst of a massive upgrade

of our road network.

But does our love of the car come at a price?

Well, we risk increasing our rates of diabetes, increasing our rates of

cardiovascular disease, increasing dementia, increasing depression.

People feeling generally less good, less happy, less productive.

There are more than two million cars on Scotland's roads

and the number's rising.

Manufacturers promise us comfort and convenience - freedom, even.

But there's growing evidence all that comes at a cost, to our health.

Amidst warnings of heart disease, strokes and obesity, and claims of up

to 2,000 premature deaths each year,

I want to know, is Scotland car sick?

ENGINE TURNS OVER

ENGINE REVS

'My name's David Miller.

'I'm a motorist, a cyclist and a pedestrian.

'I also travel by bus, train, even tram.

'But it's the car I rely on most.

'I drive thousands of miles each year.'

Millions of Scots love their cars.

Rely on their cars.

And you know what? I'm one of them.

This beautiful MG is the car I coveted

when I was growing up as a schoolboy in Ayrshire back in the 1970s.

It's taken me until the age of 46 to finally get my hands on one.

But you know what? I'm rather enjoying it.

Time spent behind the wheel is rarely this much fun.

For many, this is the reality of 21st-century motoring...

-RADIO:

-..an accident between 27...

A slow frustrating commute with only the radio or a sat nav for company.

At least we can be sure our modern hi-tech cars are meeting

the highest environmental standards. Or can we?

The Volkswagen scandal spreads to Europe.

It admits 11 million cars around the world have software which

cheats pollution emissions tests.

The Volkswagen group's emissions scandal

has led car buyers around the world to question claims made by the big

manufacturers about the benefits of diesel engines.

The link between the cars we choose to drive, air pollution

and ill-health is under greater scrutiny than ever before.

Cars, lorries, vans and buses, fuelled by diesel and petrol,

all contribute to what campaigners see as a major threat.

We think that air pollution is a public health crisis.

Although you can't see it,

it's having an impact on our health - it can cause asthma attacks,

it can make you more likely to have a heart attack or stroke.

So it is a public health crisis

and the reason for our air pollution is mainly traffic,

so we need to see the Scottish government working with local

councils to tackle traffic levels on our roads

so that we can breathe cleaner air and live healthier lifestyles.

Here in Glasgow, and across Scotland,

work goes on around the clock to monitor air pollution on our streets.

Warnings are issued to those whose health is most likely to suffer.

This looks like the TARDIS.

It might not be quite as exciting as the TARDIS. Tell me what it does.

So, this site in particular monitors for PM 2.5,

PM 10 and then nitrogen dioxide, with this analyser here.

There's also a black carbon monitor down here.

These monitor 24/7, all year.

Because it's quite a roadside site obviously, we would visit

every two weeks.

And what you get is, it pulls in a sample from the roof

and it takes it through each of the systems,

and depending on the analyser or monitor,

for the pollutant in question.

-This is just one station out of a big network...

-Yeah, there are 91 sites.

-..right across Scotland?

-Across Scotland, yeah.

They're monitoring a complex mix of gases and particles.

It's a cocktail which could take months, even years off your life,

thanks to an increased risk of asthma attacks, lung diseases,

heart attacks and strokes.

Nitric oxide, nitrogen dioxide

and carbon monoxide are just some of the gases which make up the mix.

Then there are tiny particles, mainly from diesel engines.

The more scientists learn about their impact on our health,

the more worried they become.

And we shouldn't forget carbon dioxide -

a greenhouse gas which contributes to climate change.

Right, just get yourself comfortable.

'I wanted to know more about the potential impact on my own health.'

'So, I came here - the Centre for Cardiovascular Science

'at Edinburgh's Royal infirmary.'

-This is the fun bit for me.

-Ah-haha!

So, David, these are my results. What do they tell us?

What this recording is doing is looking at your heart

and seeing how much stress it's under.

And from this we can get some really good idea as to how your heart is

responding to that physical stress that you have just been through.

But if I had been exposed to high levels of those tiny particles

produced by diesel engines,

my results could have been much more worrying.

What we have found is that the blood vessels in the body,

when you've been exposed to diluted down diesel exhaust,

the blood vessels don't react properly.

And they don't react properly in two ways.

One - they don't relax as well, so they're bit tighter and stiffer.

And the second thing that happens is that they tend to form

more blood clots in the body.

And that's important - both those things are important -

because they're very closely associated with heart attacks.

And we've found from various studies

that have looked at population level,

that when there is a polluted day,

you are much more likely to have a heart attack.

So it tends to trigger heart attacks.

Researchers can demonstrate how exposure to air pollution

makes our blood stickier and more likely to clot.

That's what increases the risk of strokes and heart attacks.

'George Allison knows all about that.

'A former lorry driver,

'he suffered a heart attack.

'George has been left wondering

'if exposure to air pollution could have affected his health.'

We are being told nowadays that diesel emissions

are a real cause for concern.

Did you ever worry about that?

You never gave that a thought.

You just drove. Even when you were, eh...

standing next to a lorry or anything like that.

I mean, if you're walking into it and the guy's ticking over,

you're breathing in these fumes anyway, in't you,

these particles, and you don't know what harm they're doing.

'The research goes on. Many questions remain.

'But we know air pollution from traffic is damaging'

the health of the most vulnerable.

'Scotland's Chief Medical Officer is Dr Catherine Calderwood.'

Well, I think that

the difficulty with air pollution in our communities

is that it's going to hit the most vulnerable people hardest.

So babies - particularly preterm babies - children with asthma,

elderly people with chronic obstructive airways disease,

or with angina, they will definitely have those conditions

worsened by air pollution.

So it is a priority because, of course,

this is an inequalities issue, the most vulnerable people being

more affected than people who are generally more healthy.

So, doctors, scientists and politicians agree -

we have a serious public health problem to tackle.

It's Scotland's councils which are on the front line.

If they choose, they can conduct roadside emissions testing

and require drivers to switch off idling engines.

If the regulations aren't met,

motorists can be issued with a fixed penalty notice.

But research for this programme has revealed

only 13 of Scotland's 32 local authorities hold these powers

more than a decade after they were introduced.

In our big cities, Glasgow tests around 3,000 vehicles every year.

But Aberdeen has stopped testing, and Dundee doesn't test either.

Our congested capital, Edinburgh,

has never carried out roadside emissions testing, despite

having some of the most polluted streets in the country

and the power to do so.

The Scottish government says its vision is to ensure Scotland

has the best air quality in Europe

and it argues local authorities have a key role to play.

Yet some senior councillors have told us they're struggling to cope

with the impact of the Scottish Government's road-building

programme and lack the resources they need to make a real difference.

It's claimed Scotland spent just £3 million

fighting air pollution last year,

while investing 700 million building new roads.

So, are our councils and political leaders doing enough to protect us?

I asked the man at the top.

Well, I think that emissions

and clear air is certainly more

of a topic now than it was before

and I hope that Local Authorities reflect on that.

We've had a consensual debate in Parliament about actions

that should be undertaken

and that now has to work its way through local government, as well.

There are a range of powers that can be deployed

to make an impact locally

and I'd encourage leaders to take this very seriously.

'Our love of the car can affect our health in other ways, too.'

CYCLE BELL RINGS

'Biking in the Borders.

'On a day like this, it is

'not hard to see why more of us are choosing to travel by bike.

'Choosing two wheels rather than four, even just one day a week,

'helps tackle air pollution and congestion.

'It also helps tackle obesity.

'It's no coincidence that as car use has increased,

'our waist measurements have increased, too.

'Professor Chris Oliver knows all about the dangers of not

'getting enough exercise.'

I was morbidly obese in 2007.

I'd just worked very hard professionally.

I hadn't really overeaten,

I'd just stopped exercising for nearly ten, 15 years,

and I was 27.5 stone.

So I had a colleague who was a surgeon

and we had a discussion and I had a gastric band in 2007.

I lost 12 stone after that.

Got back to cycling - did little rides to begin with,

a few hundred yards, because that's all I could manage.

Then I started to ride with a 20-mile group,

then the 40-mile group and then I thought,

well, if I can do 40 miles a day, I can do Land's End to John O'Groats.

Are we doing enough to make it easier for people to...

..follow your example, really, by adopting more active lifestyles?

We're certainly trying, but there are lots more things

we can do for active travel, such as cycling and walking.

Cycling - we're slowly moving on with that, we are many years behind

the continentals in Holland and Scandinavia.

With the infrastructure, we are just so many...

I think we are 40 years behind.

'Campaigners argue Scotland must invest a greater

'share of its transport budget in walking and cycling.

'So, how much are we spending right now?'

In terms of active transport,

it's now at a record level at £39 million.

That's the highest ever investment in active travel.

1.9% of your budget, is that right?

Well, it's still £39 million, it's still at a record level

and it's about behaviour change, as well.

It's not JUST about throwing money at certain projects.

It's about the culture we want to deliver.

And that is about encouraging more people onto active travel -

walking and cycling, ensuring that the infrastructure is there,

but there's facilities if people want to use it also.

There's a harsh reality here - obesity costs.

It's estimated the NHS in Scotland spends £600 million a year dealing

with the consequences of our

high-calorie, low-activity lifestyles.

We need to get this message about physical activity

and the importance, the additional benefits that that brings.

The car encourages sedentary behaviour -

people drive to work, drive even to the gym - they sit at their desks.

But in fact, a little bit of physical activity is really

very beneficial.

Campaigners argue, by investing in walking and cycling,

and reducing our reliance on the car, it's possible to save money

overall, because demand for NHS services will fall.

Here in Edinburgh, there are clear signs that approach is paying off.

The council's investing more

and more each year, providing bike-users with safer routes to

work and school, and the number of cyclists is on the rise.

Remember, Scotland spends less than 2% of its transport

budget on walking and cycling.

This is where much of that budget is being spent -

the new Queensferry Crossing.

For commuters, its opening can't come soon enough.

It will carry cars and lorries.

The ageing Forth Road Bridge will carry buses.

This is a remarkable feat of engineering.

There is no doubt about that.

It's only one man's view, but speaking as someone

who's been up there, I reckon this bridge is going to be beautiful.

An emblem of modern Scotland.

Critics, though, are far from convinced.

They are warning this is actually concrete evidence that

Scotland is locking itself into a future in which we are more

and more dependent on the car.

The main issue was that the crossing needed to be replaced -

that's why we're building a new bridge,

which we are doing very much on time and under budget.

Of course, the infrastructures there then gives us

the options for priority for public transport and other options.

Now, the purpose of building the new bridge was

because the old bridge needed to be replaced and that's why...

That's understood. Sorry for interrupting.

But if we're talking about unconstrained growth being

unsustainable, in the words of Transport Scotland,

what will you do in five years' time if we discover that more

people are choosing to travel across the Forth by car?

We've not got a quota of how many cars are allowed to cross.

You know, we put down a buyer.

It's about making public transport more attractive,

giving people the option to use the bus and, indeed, rail, as well.

So those options will make public transport more attractive.

And whatever the destinations are,

there's issues around city-centre parking, town-centre parking

as well - there is a limit as to what communities can actually take.

Ministers argue it's all about ensuring public

transport is a viable alternative for more and more of us.

For commuters, cost and convenience matter most.

I hitched a ride with Nicola Scott on her daily

journey from the Borders to the heart of the capital.

For Nicola, the car wins every time.

I had actually Google mapped home to work.

With public transport, it would take over two hours each way.

Also the flexibility in terms of when I'm starting

and finishing work, you know, car sharing

and public transport wouldn't really be feasible options.

You're in a part of the country which has benefited in the last

few months from the introduction of a big new public transport scheme -

-the Borders railway.

-I haven't actually been on the train yet.

I think my mum and dad have.

But it almost sits the other side of the Borders.

I would be driving or having to get the bus for about 20 minutes,

30 minutes to get to the train station.

I'm intrigued by this, though. Because this was a huge project.

-The Queen even opened it and you've not tried it!

-Yeah.

I don't... I just haven't even thought about getting on the train.

Because the car's better?

For me, personally, yeah.

For some of us, the daily commute simply has to be by car.

So is there a danger of demonising drivers?

'The journalist and broadcaster Alan Douglas is a staunch

'defender of Scotland's motorists.'

The fact is that if you drive a car,

you are going to create pollution.

That's accepted.

Now the level of that pollution is debatable,

depending on what you drive.

But if it really does concern you,

if it's so important to you, then you shouldn't drive at all.

But then you're into other issues.

If you go on the bus, the bus that you're taking is creating pollution.

It is a fact of life. But what's the alternative?

You sit in your house and do nothing?

So the alternative would be, give up your car

and inhale someone else's pollution?

Well... Well, the car is...

We have to live with the car,

the car is here. We have to live with it.

It's personal freedom.

When I get in my car, I have the choice to go where

I want to go, when I want to go

and I can decide who sits beside me.

-Here we go.

-Good morning.

-Morning.

'Time to meet another driver and another self-confessed petrol head.

'But these days it's this electric car

'which is getting David Brook charged up.'

Flick that little switch. Cover.

-Simple as that.

-Simple as that.

'David lives in Falkirk and commutes more than 50 miles every day.

'Two years ago,

'he swapped his thirsty V8 Lexus for this Nissan Leaf.'

It started to dawn on me that this would make sense

and we are totally, totally convinced by it now.

We would never have a petrol or diesel car now for doing

the commute to work. Cos it would just be...

It would feel bonkers

to go back to taxing a car, putting money in it every week just

to get to work, when this thing gets us to work for free.

In all of our conversation,

you haven't mentioned the environment once.

I understand that it's better for the environment,

zero emissions out of the tailpipe.

It wasn't a massive consideration for me when I bought the car.

-So this was a cold-headed financial decision?

-Purely financial.

'David's no green activist, and the electricity

'he uses to charge the car isn't necessarily green, either.

'For him, though, this car is simply a practical way to solve

'an economic necessity - getting to work.

'Electric cars don't reduce congestion,

'but they do help cut pollution.

'In our towns and cities, there's a much cheaper

'and easier way to do both.'

TRADITIONAL DANISH MUSIC PLAYS

'This is Copenhagen and, yes, it is wonderful.

'Cities around the world increasingly see the Danish

'capital as an example of how to get urban transport right.'

There's an expanding Metro network,

but it's cycling and walking which are key to the city's success.

I've come here to discover why.

This glitzy new business park could be in almost any European city,

but, for me, this place is remarkable because it isn't choked with cars.

People get here on bike or on foot.

Facilities like these may be commonplace in Copenhagen,

but they are few and far between in Scotland.

The situation here, though, hasn't been achieved overnight.

'Here, in the heart of the city,

'stands the Danish Cyclists' Federation.

'They sell nice shiny bikes and lobby on behalf of two-wheeled travellers.

'Klaus Bondam runs the Federation.

'A former mayor,

'he's played a key role shaping Copenhagen's transport policies.'

Copenhagen and a lot of other Danish cities have reached

a level where the bicycle is integrated on a completely

equal level in the urban transportation system.

And, if you ask me, that is how it should be.

That is how it should be in any modern city.

You are in a city where 45% of all workplaces and study places

are reached by bicycle every single day throughout the year.

You are in a city where the car is basically a minority.

Those numbers are staggering and worth repeating.

Almost half of commuters here travel by bike every day.

In Denmark as a whole, including the hilly bits, it is almost a fifth.

Only around 6% of Scots say they regularly travel to work by bike.

How have you got to the level of cycling which we see around us

in the city today?

First of all, there was never a car industry in Denmark.

And I think that is a very important fact to understand.

Denmark not having had a car industry

of course meant that we did not have the car industry

influencing on the planning of our cities.

Secondly, basically ever since the car was introduced to the

market, there has been a very high taxation of cars.

A car is taxed at 180% in Denmark.

'On Copenhagen's stylish waterfront, I meet this man -

'Mikael Colville-Andersen is a hugely influential advocate for cycling.

'He runs an urban design company.

'Its name is a call to action - Copenhagenize.'

The expression Copenhagenize that I coined was

sort of way of saying that what is possible here,

what has happened here in Copenhagen - taking the bicycle

seriously as transport - is possible in every other city in the world.

So other cities can "Copenhagenize" themselves if they want

and we have seen, oh, my God,

all around the world, every city is discussing bicycles, you know.

Really, the bicycle here is the fastest way from A to B.

If you make the bicycle the fastest way from A to B, I call it

A to B-ism, people will ride.

The weirdest people will be seen on bicycles, you know.

63% of all the politicians in the national parliament here ride a bicycle.

They do not do that, you know, waving their green agenda

and showing the world,

demonstrably showing the world how green they are.

It's just the quickest way for them

to get to work, like it is for me and my kids going to school.

One of the things which strikes me about the situation here is

that you do not talk about cyclists or motorists or pedestrians,

everyone's just trying to get around the city.

I'm not a cyclist and I don't want to be called a cyclist.

I don't wear spandex. I do not gear up to go cycling.

I just, you know, I just ride around my city.

I'm just a Copenhagener

who happens to be using a bicycle because it makes sense.

'There's still lots of traffic on main routes through Copenhagen,

'but just imagine how congested this road would be

'if all the cyclists were driving a car.'

Some argue our cities can't afford to invest in walking and cycling.

Copenhagen argues it can't afford not to.

Bicycle infrastructure is extremely cheap compared to the

outcomes of it.

For every kilometre that we exchange the car with the bicycle,

we save the Danish society seven kroner.

That's almost a pound.

But it saves Danish society in prolonged life

and improved health effects.

Denmark's love of the bike hasn't stopped the country

investing in its roads.

But that investment hasn't been made in urban motorways like ours.

Just outside Copenhagen, this is the futuristic road

and rail bridge which links Denmark with Sweden.

It offers some prospective.

My time here has taught me it is

possible to invest in the roadwork work, underpin economic growth,

while at the same time,

re-shape towns and cities to ensure the car is no longer dominant,

to create places where people feel safer to walk and cycle,

improving their health along the way.

This bridge doesn't just link Denmark and Sweden -

perhaps it also offers Scotland a route to the future, too.

Back home, our political leaders often encourage us

to look to Scandinavia for inspiration,

about what Scotland could and should become.

So, do they share Denmark's vision?

I do think there is political imperative around this

and therefore a great deal of interest.

But it will require a culture change from the public, as well,

in terms of how we go about our daily business.

There are more cars in Scotland now than ever before

and we are using them more and more, too.

As we've learned, that has an impact on our health.

The young, the old and the sick are at greatest risk.

But there are implications for all of us.

Well, we risk increasing our rates of diabetes, increasing our rates of

cardiovascular disease, increasing dementia, increasing depression.

People feeling generally less good, less happy, less productive.

If you are looking at public health, you look at the big killers,

the causes of ill health - heart disease is one of them.

And this is one of the top avoidable contributors to that ill-health.

So this is something that we have to address

and we have to try and modify.

A lot's changed

since this old sports car rolled off the production line in 1974.

It's time for me to hand back the keys.

Today, our cars are safer, cleaner and more efficient,

but our reliance on them still comes at a cost.

If we are to get on the road to a healthier future,

perhaps it's time for all of us to learn to love our cars a little less.