Student Cyclists Experience PM2.5 Pollution Hotspots around an Urban University Campus

Although cycling has environmental and health benefits, urban cyclists are at risk of exposure to harmful concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2.5). We used a low-cost particle sensor and MapMyRide to collect geolocated 1-minute PM2.5 measurements along four routes surrounding an urban unive...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inThe Geographical bulletin (Ypsilanti, Mich.) Vol. 61; no. 2; pp. 105 - 113
Main Authors Luce, Brett W, Barrett, Tate E, Ponette-González, Alexandra G
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Ypsilanti Gamma Theta Upsilon 01.11.2020
Subjects
Air pollution
Bicycling
College campuses
Colleges & universities
Commuting
Exposure
Particulate matter
Population
Students
Traffic
Urban areas
United States > US
Texas
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Summary:Although cycling has environmental and health benefits, urban cyclists are at risk of exposure to harmful concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2.5). We used a low-cost particle sensor and MapMyRide to collect geolocated 1-minute PM2.5 measurements along four routes surrounding an urban university campus. Measurements were collected from 7:30-9:30 AM during fall 2017 and spring 2018. We found no significant differences in ride-averaged PM2.5 concentrations among routes, but all routes experienced higher concentrations when winds blew from the southeast-south-southwest. Hotspots, areas with consistently elevated PM2.5 concentrations compared to surrounding areas, were detected along all routes in areas with high traffic density and major signalized intersections. The highest PM2.5 concentrations occurred after 8:30, likely due to increased vehicular traffic. Understanding PM2.5 variability in urban areas is crucial to allow cyclists to better determine routes to avoid exposure to harmful levels of PM2.5.
ISSN:0731-3292
2163-5900