Abstract
The current studies on carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and the impacts on public health focus mainly on evaluating CO2 emissions from two types of emission sources. The first is a fixed source type from industrial plants, which can be controlled or easily evaluated. The second is a mobile source type from the transport sector, especially from medium- and heavy-duty vehicles (MHDVs), which produce high emissions. However, the common methods of evaluation of the average value of CO2 emissions per kilometer of a vehicle use a general Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) model that does not consider the topography or road conditions. This affects the accuracy of CO2 emission assessments and, in turn, affects the accuracy of any analysis needed to establish health policies and the management of public health within the affected area. In this paper, therefore, we present the development of emission coefficient calculations with varying topography conditions for MHDVs with consideration of the health effects on the populace. The study area was the Asian highway network in Thailand that passes through all regions and is geographically diverse. Data were collected from the Department of Highway’s records, global positioning system (GPS) and electronic control unit (ECU) with data consisting of road data, slope, distance, traffic level and vehicle weight, as well as fuel consumption along the transportation route. To analyze and map out the correlation of the CO2 emission coefficients for each road slope, we determined the coefficient of the CO2 emissions using multiple linear regression analysis and validated this using Huber–White robust standard errors for heteroscedasticity. This method was more cost-efficient and time-efficient compared to the conventional approaches. We also created CO2 emission maps with risk points for health effects, and we propose policy designs and plans to manage the traffic level in each of these areas prone to higher levels of such emissions.
Highlights
The modern trend of city developments veering towards smart city model [1,2,3] proves to be beneficial in elevating overall human quality of life, with said model being aimed at sustainability in many aspects including economy, society and environment
This study aims to develop the CO2 emission coefficient for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles (MHDVs) in Thailand against varying topography, which consist of the road data, slope, distance, traffic, weight and fuel consumption along the transportation route
This study focuses on the CO2 coefficient value calculated from actual collected data, using information gathered by global positioning system (GPS) tracking and electronic control unit (ECU) system of medium- and heavy-duty vehicles (MHDVs) moving through various geographically diverse areas with different elevations
Summary
The modern trend of city developments veering towards smart city model [1,2,3] proves to be beneficial in elevating overall human quality of life, with said model being aimed at sustainability in many aspects including economy, society and environment. Klein [17] devised a pollution calculation approach for vehicle emission in the Netherlands factoring in the number of cargo vehicles active using simulation programs wherein different temperatures are accounted for, and factoring in additional effects by HDVs. Lin [18] study estimation of emissions at signalized intersections using an improved Motor Vehicle Emission Simulator (MOVES) Model with GPS Data is one to begin incorporating GPS data, which helped in producing a more accurate emission estimation than methods that only factor in numbers of vehicles which can better serve as a foundation for further environmental management planning. No studies have yet to consider the different road slope levels of different areas for MHDVs as a factor that influences CO2 emission of vehicles and the subsequent air pollution this emission produces, which in turn continues on to be a primary cause of the global warming phenomenon through greenhouse gases accumulation, and a considerable health hazard to residents of affected areas in the form of potential lung cancer and increases the risk of bladder cancer [10]. The studies propose carbon dioxide maps of areas with high risks of health effect and propose the policy and plans to manage the transport traffic in each area for alleviation for the populace effected by such emission
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
