Analysis on the Effect of the Mobility of Combustion Vehicles in the Environment of Cities and the Improvement in Air Pollution in Europe: A Vision for the Awareness of Citizens and Policy Makers

Javier Cárcel-Carrasco, Manuel Pascual-Guillamón and Fidel Salas-Vicente
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Javier Cárcel-Carrasco: ITM, Institute of Materials Technology, Universitat Politècnica de València, 46022 Valencia, Spain
Manuel Pascual-Guillamón: ITM, Institute of Materials Technology, Universitat Politècnica de València, 46022 Valencia, Spain
Fidel Salas-Vicente: ITM, Institute of Materials Technology, Universitat Politècnica de València, 46022 Valencia, Spain

Land, 2021, vol. 10, issue 2, 1-16

Abstract: Today, the design and remodeling of urban environments is being sought in order to achieve green, healthy, and sustainable cities. The effect of air pollution in cities due to vehicle combustion gases is an important part of the problem. Due to the indirect effect caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, political powers in Europe have imposed confinement measures for citizens by imposing movement restrictions in large cities. This indirect measure has given us a laboratory to show how the reduction in vehicle circulation affects in a short time the levels of air pollution in cities. Therefore, this article analyzes the effect in different European cities such as Milan, Prague, Madrid, Paris, and London. These cities have been chosen due to their large amount of daily road traffic that generates high levels of pollution; therefore, it can clearly show the fall in these pollutants in the air in the analyzed period. The results shown through this study indicate that the reduction in combustion vehicles greatly affects the levels of pollution in different cities. In these periods of confinement, there was an improvement in air quality where pollutant values dropped to 80% compared to the previous year. This should serve to raise awareness among citizens and political powers to adopt measures that induce sustainable transport systems.

Keywords: nitrogen dioxide; PM 10; road traffic; air pollution; COVID-19; air quality; cities (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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