Abstract
Cycling is a healthy habit; however, are its benefits outweighing risks when biking in heavily trafficked and air-polluted cities? Research involved studying contamination with traffic-related elements of dust collected from bike paths located in top trafficked cities of Europe in Poland. Human health risk was assessed via inhalation and ingestion pathways for adults and children. Bike path dust was heavily contaminated with Zn, Cd (Geoaccumulation index Igeo 4) and Pb (Igeo 3), sourced predominantly from nonexhaust car emissions. The concentrations of metals in dust decreased in the following descending order: Zn > Mn > Cu > Pb > Cr > Cd. A fractionation study revealed that Zn and Cd are almost entirely bioavailable (Mobility factor MF above 90%), causing hazards to humans and the environment. The highest congested intersections result in more TRAP-contaminated dust deposited on bike paths, which is easily resuspended, posing a health risk for cyclists or pedestrians. Avoiding cycling in proximity to heavily trafficked routes should be considered, when possible, as well as physical removal of dust by wet sweeping to limit dust resuspension.
Highlights
Cycling is a healthy habit; are its benefits outweighing risks when biking in heavily trafficked and air-polluted cities? Research involved studying contamination with traffic-related elements of dust collected from bike paths located in top trafficked cities of Europe in Poland
The same correlation can be observed in Poland, where the prevailing number of old cars driving in city traffic directly relates to enhanced traffic-related air pollution (TRAP)
A fractionation study confirmed that Zn and Cd, which were found in extreme concentrations in bike path dust (Igeo indices above 3), are almost entirely bioavailable and mobile, causing direct hazards to humans and the environment
Summary
Research involved studying contamination with traffic-related elements of dust collected from bike paths located in top trafficked cities of Europe in Poland. The results of Apparicio et al.[7] revealed, for instance, that cyclists are exposed to 47 μg/m3 NO2 and 3.3 dB(A) more when cycling on a primary road than on a residential street This abovementioned research is especially important since it was conducted in one of the most polluted cities in the world, Delhi India. At the same time, cycling grid infrastructure is constantly growing in Poland, especially in urban environments, when bike paths are commonly in proximity to the main routes. TRAP is considered a major source of pollution in any urban environment, especially in proximity to heavily congested roads. Many authors[20,21,22,23,24,25] predict that approximately 70% of brake-emitted metals undergo secondary resuspension into the atmosphere
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