Spatial Analysis of Exposure to Traffic-Related Air Pollution in Mexico: Implications for Urban Planning to Improve Public Health

Abstract

In cities, traffic is one of the major determinants for air quality. Studies have shown that proximity to roadways with heavy traffic has been linked with increased incidence and prevalence of a range of health effects such as adverse birth outcomes, dementia, asthma, and increased risk of bronchitis, wheezing, deficits in lung function growth and airway inflammation, especially among children. In Mexico, 103 urban areas have air quality monitoring, whilst more than 2,000 cities lack any information and only 29 have monitoring systems that are robust enough to estimate exposure. This poses serious limitations for environmental and health authorities when aiming at assessing current exposure levels to Traffic-Related Air Pollution (TRAP) with the purpose of designing and implementing policies to reduce the impacts of poor air quality in the population. This study proposes an approach to estimate the population potentially exposed to TRAP using Space Syntax’s accessibility index as the urban form variable. We selected the ten most accessible roads of the five Mexican cities to estimate the proportion of vulnerable population (residents, employees, schoolchildren, hospital patients) with the highest potential exposure to TRAP at a distance of 500 m. Our findings show a similar proportion of the population continually exposed to TRAP due to the proximity to roads with heavy traffic than studies using more complex models. Finally, this study presents alternatives to reduce current population exposure to traffic emissions in Mexican cities.

Modeling Spatial Distribution and Determinant of PM2.5 at Micro-Level Using Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) to Inform Sustainable Mobility Policies in Campus Based on Evidence from King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

“…This makes a robust case for policymakers to make the campus car-free, as curbing sources of fine particle emissions might reduce deadly health consequences [73]. Our study reinforces the findings of Ruben Garnica-Monroy et al [8], which suggest that the exposure of a population to roads with heavy traffic exposes it to higher health risks and necessitates changes in urban planning and public health policies.…”

“…Automobiles are the major source of fine particle air pollution-a study in Sao Paulo confirmed that a trucker's strike was associated with potential economic and health benefits [7]. A study in Mexico showed that people living in spatial proximity to high-traffic roads are highly exposed to traffic-related air pollution, which is a matter of grave concern for urban planners and public health professionals, while another study in Santiago, Chile, identified three distinct episodes of fine particle air pollution, which is helpful in the mitigation of PM 2.5 and PM 10 pollutants in urban settings [8,9].…”