irishcar.com

28 May 2002: Below 10mph the Toyota Prius is soundless – which makes this environmentally friendly car the ideal choice for Westminster City Council's Charter Mark award-winning 24 Hour Noise Team.

Three of the petrol-electric hybrid vehicles are now in service with the high-profile council, helping team-members respond to complaints about disturbances and to carry out regular visits around central London.

Westminster became one of the first local authorities to use Prius when the cars joined its fleet last December.

The fuel-efficiency of most cars suffers markedly in urban areas, yet the opposite is the case with the Toyota Prius, which thrives on the sort of inner-city traffic conditions found in busy Westminster. The car is driven by a 1.5-litre VVT-i petrol engine, but a 30kW electric motor takes over at low speeds. This allows it to return more than 60mpg around town, and with the lowest CO2 emissions at only 114g/km, it easily meets the strictest European emission standards, which do not come into force until 2005.

"Prius is a good operational vehicle," commented Westminster City Council's Transport Manager Neil Donald. "The Noise Team was looking at conversions such as electric vehicles but we needed a proven ‘clean’ vehicle that was also practical and cost-effective.

"We looked around for something that would do the job and show that Westminster City Council is environmentally friendly."

The Noise Team provides a rapid-response service for anyone being disturbed by loud music, parties, barking dogs, revving vehicles, faulty alarms or out-of-hours DIY or construction work. If the noise is a statutory nuisance, team-members can serve a notice requiring it to be stopped, and follow up with a prosecution if necessary.

The team responds to as many as 18,000 calls a year, and aims to contact the complainant within 45 minutes. It also tackles noise problems before they occur, by checking known ‘hotspots’ for unreasonable disturbance levels and by visiting and advising those who run entertainment and commercial premises and special events.