TRAFFIC EMISSIONS
Introduction
Background and aims
The Australian transport system is the third leading contributor to environmental pollution in the form of greenhouse gases emitted from vehicles. Road transport is fast rapidly expanding in Australian cities due to the improved infrastructure and road network systems. However, these developments in road networks in cities result in more automobiles in cities thus increasing the rate of toxic gas emission to the atmosphere. Immediate interventions are needed to control and the rate of carbon and lead emission from automobiles to help conserve environments and health of urban dwellers. A report released in 2016 by the UNEP showed that over 4,3 million lives were lost due to respiratory illness that were caused by outdoor air pollution. It further showed that these outdoor pollution came from vehicle emissions from traffics being the main source in urban areas. Significantly, Harrison and Pant in 2013 established that increased growth of vehicle fleet in cities is the main reason for air pollution in cities, affecting air quality hence exposing the town dwellers to health risks as they inhale the polluted air. Australian health department, in several occasions has warned that air pollution in towns is the major causative agent of respiratory cancer diseases and lung and heart complications.
This study specifically focuses on the level of traffic pollution from Perth streets. The investigation was prompted by the needs to analyse and understand peoples’ level of exposure to the toxic pollutants emanating from cars around town. It has been a challenge for quite some time to monitor and control the concentration of pollutants from vehicles in towns. Since concentration of these pollutants vary with distance and speed of the vehicle, congestion, weather conditions and the shape of street canyons. Development of this project is based on finding the best alternative solution in monitoring traffic emission in the streets of Perth through modelling system. The model is to provide estimates of detailed suite of emissions with fine spatial outcomes at a reduced expense of monitoring equipment.
Development of emission control model, analysis of the vehicular emission inventory was prepared to understand the main pollutants released from combustion of diesel fuels in cars. The main pollutants are carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOx), PM, non-methane hydrocarbons, nitrous oxides (N2O) and greenhouse gases such as methane (CH4), carbon dioxide (CO2). The PM emission from dust suspension and tire wear also contributes to air pollution as they increase concentration of hydrocarbons in the atmosphere. Many attempts have made by individuals and authorities to curb and control the rate of air pollution emanating from traffic in Perth and other major cities of Australia. Some of the implemented measures include provision of alternatives to use of road transport. Alternatives such as provision of cyclist lane on streets of major cities to encourage the culture of cycling to work or in town to reduce the use of personal cars, modification of public transport system to provide comfort to passengers. Another reliable solution was the introduction of electric cars and trains to supplement commutation in public transport. Establishment of stringent measures on greenhouse gas emission standards for vehicles in urban cities. However, these attempts have not yield the much expected outcome in monitoring and controlling vehicular emissions. Lack of proper control by previous control methods are attributed to the dynamic and complexity vehicular emissions, weather conditions and speed of the vehicle motion on streets. Australian movement has devised quite a number of rules and standards to pollution emissions. as early as 1970s, the country have had set standards for new vehicles in its roads, with this standards progressively tightened to yield better result. Current set of standards have incorporated other international control measures to help achieve the sustainable environment globally. In the past five years, the standards have showed some notable impact in controlling traffic pollution but not to the level it ought to be. Therefore there is need of a more efficient model to supplement government’s efforts in controlling vehicular emissions.
Aims and objective
The aim of this research project is to understand vehicular emitted pollutants in the Mitchel freeway in the northern of Perth. Due to the fact that number of private cars is in continuous rise, these measures put in place by authorities might not be effective enough to help curb the adverse effects of pollution. In this account this project focuses on formulating an effective alternative solution of controlling and monitoring of traffic emission through development of simulation models. SUMO methodology primarily focused on identification of the toxic pollutants produced by traffic systems and methods of controlling the pollutants.
Significance and innovation
Environment pollution in urban towns has been a generic problem that ranges from impurity of air quality through to global effects to health of humanity. Different stakeholders have been incorporated in the campaign towards finding a sustainable and long lasting solution in mitigating the effects of traffic pollution in towns. It is quite important to involve all actors in the struggle to contain the pollution situation in Perth. Automotive manufactures are key player that needs to be involved the quest for substantive solution. Through manufactures research and innovation, sustainable transport vessels that uses clean energy and electricity to replace the use of fossil fuels in car engines. Development of technical solutions for model systems for critical system that enables validation of the assumptions regarding systems and model functionality. Simulation models are crucial tools for benchmark among researchers and consultants in transport sector. Microscopic models and macroscopic models are used in regions with few intersections and in areas of complicated and replicate regions such as cities respectively. Hence this research is all about simulating the traffic pollution system of Perth city using microscopic SUMO models.
The SUMO model is much significant in evaluating solution designed to reduce road traffic impact on environmental pollution. SUMO provides a platform for computation of the exact amount of the emitted pollutants with capability of reducing the predictable error. it provide a more capacitated system with increased input parameters of the covered pollutants. Most private cars uses diesel and petrol as source of fuel to propel their engines. The SUMO model to be model allows further measurement within the application in the traffic simulation for use in prediction of the emission of toxic pollutants from Perth traffic. Significance of SUMO is that it gives areal-world traffic simulation for the town. Though it proves to be a challenge formulating an instantaneous microscopic model of traffic tracking, the decision to use inventory data obtained from HBEFA database as the investigating inventory in developing SUMO model for this research project. The integration of the of the model is to be based on the highest grade of flexibility through allowing the composition of the vehicle fleet using every elements of emission classes. Apart from enabling traffic simulation that enhances computation of all possible pollutant emissions with relevant computation route that suites the extended highways in Perth. In order to meet the purpose and objective of this research project, a shortest route was elongated to record timelines of vehicular emission as weight of edges of the road network. This involved the implementation of the algorithms of shortest routes to minimize the emission period and at the same time keep track of travel time in order to obtain correct time slice of the loaded time.
Approach and Methodology
The future of intelligent transport system is fast encroaching and taking lead in most of the developed countries in the world. One of the main aims of implementation of intelligent transport system is to improve the commutation and navigation within cities, and most importantly, to reduce and control the rate of greenhouse gas emission emanating from fossil fuel combustion into the environment. Development of SUMO model for managing air pollution from streets of Perth city is to provide data platform that generate accurate information relating to current traffic situation, based on limited number of traffic data sources and historical information entailing traffic trips on the streets of Perth city. The methodology and approach of the project involves the use of software to develop a model capable of evaluating and reviewing of pollutions that emanate from traffic around Perth roads. The SUMO model is to give transport and traffic management authorities with control measures with aid of simulation capability on the real time emission tracking of cars. The approach of the simulation model is to give microscopic measures and how to quantify how much toxic gases are emitted into the environment per given time period and how to rectify the effects caused thereafter.
SUMO as the microscopic traffic model to manage the emission from traffics systems; model a typical control tool with series of sub-models, each aspect generating all sources of input data for the sustainable control. Airborne pollutants emanating from traffic can be segregated from background sources through use of air quality measurements from single station and metrological data. The provision of a freely available semi-empirical model box and spread sheet based traffic model, which is emission prediction model. SOMU model provides a measuring model for traffic flow of emissions of the cheapest cost with high measurement efficiency. The trip information is derived from traffic sensors and demographic data from journey to work survey. The model records the trip data and generates the fleet activity on the traffic network. The information is fed into the set emission control model together with vehicle emissions factors to generate the emissions data for the network. In some cases a dispersion model is added to predict the dispersion of emissions away from the vehicles and the roadway. In the event where full data are a challenge to come by from the system, a simpler approach becomes more appropriate with alternatives such the use of satellite aerosol optical depth data and other land regression models to supplement for spatial data regarding PM. To improve street monitoring and real time feed into the model, GPS sensors are used to substantially improve the monitoring and control systems. Additionally, the provided simulation enhances the tracking of the vehicle as they move in streets, this being a major boost in tracking the smoke produced and at what speed are they maximum. Therefore the developed SUMO simulation model that is integrated with emission models to give efficient outcome. The software approach facilitates the production of the intended model to help in containing the generic challenge of air pollution from vehicles in Perth town.