AIR quality on Kendal's most polluted street has enjoyed an unexpected improvement thanks, apparently, to the foot-and-mouth crisis.

Monitoring at Kendal's pollution black-spot on Lowther Street has revealed that levels of nitrogen dioxide, a pollutant associated with traffic congestion, have fallen significantly since the crisis began six months ago this week.

Scott Burns, South Lakeland District Council's principal environmental health officer, explained that the drop of almost 50 per cent on the previous year was probably owing to fewer vehicles on the road.

"There was a significant drop.

We cannot be absolutely certain that it was caused by foot-and-mouth, but it is more likely to be that than anything else," he said.

Lowther Street was last year designated an air quality management area after tests revealed that levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) were around double the Government's air quality guidelines.

Although the drop in NO2 on Lowther Street is welcome, the level is rising again and SLDC is about to begin a £5,000 project to model the dispersal of pollutants on the street as it tries to bring pollution within levels which comply with the Government's health-driven targets.

The proposed change of traffic flows down Lowther Street which will come if Cumbria County Council's implements the Kendal Traffic Plan, possibly in the spring, should help with the pollution problem on the street.