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IMPACTS OF TRAFFIC ON AIR QUALITY AND HEALTH EFFECTS NEAR MAJOR ROADWAYS
Citation:
BALDAUF, R. W., C. BAILEY, P. T. ROWLEY, M. HOYER, AND R. COOK. IMPACTS OF TRAFFIC ON AIR QUALITY AND HEALTH EFFECTS NEAR MAJOR ROADWAYS. Presented at Urban Transport 2006, Prague, CZECH REPUBLIC, July 12 - 14, 2006.
Impact/Purpose:
The main research question guiding this task is "how do mobile source emissions impact public health and the environment." The main objectives of this task include:
(1) Identify spatial and temporal variability in pollutant concentrations near major mobile source emission locations such as urban roadways and non-road activities.
(2) Characterize real-world emissions from on- and non-road mobile sources for use in identifying hazardous components and developing and improving mobile source emissions and human exposure models.
(3) Develop mobile source emission profiles and markers for use in human exposure and air quality receptor models.
(4) Determine the impact of emerging technologies (fuels and engine systems) on emissions and exposures to toxic pollutants.
(5) Develop and improve analytical methods that measure emissions from mobile sources.
Description:
A growing number of epidemiological studies conducted in Europe, Asia, and North America have identified an increase in occurrence of adverse health effects for populations living near major roads. However, the biological mechanism(s) leading to the adverse effects have not been identified. Limitations in exposure assessment have resulted in a need to evaluate and improve methods of predicting exposures in the near road environment. Questions remain on the spatial extent of the zone of influence of the road, and the factors affecting concentration variability including traffic volume, vehicle fleet mix, and fleet operating characteristics. In the U.S., federal agencies have been under increasing pressure to evaluate potential air quality and health impacts from transportation systems.
This paper will provide a summary of studies evaluating near road health effects, air quality and population exposures. The paper will focus on work conducted in the United States, although several studies from Europe have been included. A significant amount of work has also been conducted in Europe and Asia, generally indicating similar results.