scholarly journals The Impact of the Pandemic on Vehicle Traffic and Roadside Environmental Pollution: Rzeszow City as a Case Study

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (14) ◽  
pp. 4299
Author(s):  
Miroslaw Smieszek ◽  
Vasyl Mateichyk ◽  
Magdalena Dobrzanska ◽  
Pawel Dobrzanski ◽  
Ganna Weigang
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Environmental Pollution ◽  
Traffic Flow ◽  
Traffic Volume ◽  
Motor Vehicles ◽  
Vehicle Traffic ◽  
The Road ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City ◽  
Roadside Environment

The development of the COVID-19 pandemic and the related lockdown had a major impact on vehicle traffic in cities. Based on available data from the selected city of Rzeszow, Poland, it was decided to assess changes in vehicle traffic and the impact of these changes on roadside environmental pollution. As part of the research, data from the first half of 2020 regarding vehicle traffic on selected streets of the city and on the city’s inlet routes were analyzed. For the selected road sections, changes in hourly traffic volume in 2020, compared with 2019, were also determined. With data on traffic volume, an attempt was made to estimate the impact of changes in traffic volume on air pollution in the city. Research on air pollution from motor vehicles was focused on a selected section of a city road that was equipped with an automatic air pollution measurement station located very close to the road. Additionally, at the road intersection and in the vicinity of the measuring station, a sensor was installed in the roadway to count passing vehicles. A preliminary analysis of air pollution data revealed that factors such as wind speed and direction and outside temperature had a large impact on measurement results. To eliminate the influence of these factors and to obtain data concerning only contamination originating from motor vehicles traveling along the road, an appropriate mathematical model of the traffic flow–roadside environment system was built. This model was designed to determine the air pollution in the vicinity of the road generated by traffic flow. The constructed model was verified, and the conditions for its use were determined in order to study the impact of traffic and roadside environment on the level of air pollution from harmful exhaust substances. It was shown that at certain times of the day, especially at low temperatures, other sources of harmful emissions related to home heating play a major role in air pollution in the city.

scholarly journals Extracting Road Traffic Volume in the City before and during covid-19 through Video Remote Sensing

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 2329
Author(s):  
Elżbieta Macioszek ◽  
Agata Kurek
Keyword(s):  
Travel Behavior ◽  
Traffic Management ◽  
Road Traffic ◽  
Traffic Volume ◽  
The Road ◽  
Traffic Characteristics ◽  
Annual Average Daily Traffic ◽  
On The Road ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City

Continuous, automatic measurements of road traffic volume allow the obtaining of information on daily, weekly or seasonal fluctuations in road traffic volume. They are the basis for calculating the annual average daily traffic volume, obtaining information about the relevant traffic volume, or calculating indicators for converting traffic volume from short-term measurements to average daily traffic volume. The covid-19 pandemic has contributed to extensive social and economic anomalies worldwide. In addition to the health consequences, the impact on travel behavior on the transport network was also sudden, extensive, and unpredictable. Changes in the transport behavior resulted in different values of traffic volume on the road and street network than before. The article presents road traffic volume analysis in the city before and during the restrictions related to covid-19. Selected traffic characteristics were compared for 2019 and 2020. This analysis made it possible to characterize the daily, weekly and annual variability of traffic volume in 2019 and 2020. Moreover, the article attempts to estimate daily traffic patterns at particular stages of the pandemic. These types of patterns were also constructed for the weeks in 2019 corresponding to these stages of the pandemic. Daily traffic volume distributions in 2020 were compared with the corresponding ones in 2019. The obtained results may be useful in terms of planning operational and strategic activities in the field of traffic management in the city and management in subsequent stages of a pandemic or subsequent pandemics.

scholarly journals The impact of different saturation headway values on intersection capacity

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dražen Cvitanić ◽  
Biljana Maljković
Keyword(s):  
Traffic Flow ◽  
Flow Structure ◽  
Road Network ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Traffic Volume ◽  
Signalized Intersections ◽  
Signal Timing ◽  
Bad Weather ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City

Elements of the city road network that determine its capacity are signalized intersections. Their capacity depends of many factors: traffic volume and distribution, traffic flow structure, signal timing, and number of bicyclists and pedestrians. However, the starting parameter for calculation of intersection capacity is saturation headway. This research explores the influence of weather conditions and purpose of trip on saturation headway. Saturation headways were determined on few intersections in the morning peak hour of working and weekend day, in good and bad weather conditions. The impact of different trip purposes and different weather conditions on intersection capacity is analysed, as well as the influence of using mean and median values of saturation headway when calculating the intersection capacity.

scholarly journals Variation of traffic flow due to accumulated snow formation on road

2019 ◽  
Vol 265 ◽  
pp. 02002
Author(s):  
Kazunori Munehiro ◽  
Naohisa Nakamura ◽  
Masaya Sato
Keyword(s):  
Traffic Flow ◽  
Cross Sections ◽  
Traffic Volume ◽  
Actual Situation ◽  
Snow Removal ◽  
The Road ◽  
Volume Velocity ◽  
Traffic Performance ◽  
Set Up ◽  
The City

Sapporo City has one of the heaviest snowfalls worldwide, and the road conditions in winter are getting remarkably worse. Snow removal works in winter are indispensable in order to secure traffic functions in the city. Snow accumulates on roads as soon as it is removed. It is also a problem that the deposited snow protrudes into the lanes of roads and the traffic flow drops. This study analyzed the size of deposited snow formation and the variation of traffic flow. We set up a camera for a four-lane road managed by Sapporo City (two lanes per side) and observed two seasons continuously. Width of deposited snow and traffic performance (Traffic Volume - Velocity) were analyzed based on the acquired images. The width of deposited snow was from 1.0 m to 2.5 m. When the width of the deposited snow exceeded approx.1.5 m, it was indicated that only one lane of the road will be in operation if it is originally operated as two lanes per side, with about 70% of the traffic volume and about 80% of the speed. In addition, based on the actual situation of use of bicycles and pedestrians in autumn, we propose redistribution of road cross-sections considering snow coverage width.

scholarly journals O COMPLEXO VIÁRIO ULISSES DE GÓIS E SUAS IMPLICAÇÕES NO ESPAÇO URBANO DA ZONA NORTE DE NATAL/RN

2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (9) ◽  
pp. 238
Author(s):  
Iapony Rodrigues Galvão
Keyword(s):  
Urban Space ◽  
Field Research ◽  
Capital City ◽  
Motor Vehicles ◽  
Transit System ◽  
The Road ◽  
The North ◽  
El Sistema ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City

THE ULISSES DE GÓIS VIALE COMPLEX AND ITS IMPLICATIONS IN THE URBAN AREA OF THE NORTH OF NATAL ZONE/ RNEL COMPLEJO VIARIO ULISSES DE GÓIS Y SUS IMPLICACIONES EN EL ESPACIO URBANO DE LA ZONA NORTE DE NATAL/RNO complexo viário Ulisses de Góis localizado na porção Norte da capital potiguar é composto pela Ponte Ulisses de Góis, mais conhecida como Ponte de Igapó, a qual foi, durante mais de três décadas, a única ligação entre a porção Norte com o restante da cidade e pelo Viaduto Ulisses de Góis, concluído em 2002, o qual interliga a Ponte de Igapó com outras relevantes artérias desta Zona administrativa natalense. Com a construção deste último componente viário, ocorreram profundas dinâmicas no sistema de trânsito não somente da Zona Norte como o da capital potiguar. Desta forma, a presente pesquisa visou compreender a influência do complexo viário nas dinâmicas impostas no sistema de trânsito e nas próprias configurações urbanas da capital potiguar e as possíveis melhorias (ou não) trazidas por esta obra viária para a fluência dos veículos automotores. Assim, através de pesquisas bibliográficas e pesquisas de campo realizada com a aplicação de questionários estruturados a usuários e moradores da área em questão, observou-se que, apesar de considerável parcela dos usuários (48%) afirmarem que ocorreu significativa melhoria no trânsito da zona Norte com a construção do Viaduto Ulisses de Góis, uma parcela não menos importante (37%) considera que o impacto da construção do viaduto para a fluidez do trânsito fora insignificante, pois a construção do viaduto não contribuiu para a resolução dos problemas de circulação de veículos. Percebeu-se, assim, que se torna necessário dotar a cidade de um planejamento voltado para a sua realidade, objetivando aumentar ainda mais a fluidez do trânsito na capital potiguar, através de medidas como o incremento do transporte de massa, possibilitando ainda mais a mobilidade urbana e, assim, constituindo uma cidade mais justa e igualitária para todos os natalenses.Palavras-chave: Espaço Urbano; Complexo Viário; Trânsito.ABSTRACTThe Ulisses de Góis road complex located in the northern part of the capital of potiguar is made up of the Ulisses de Góis Bridge, better known as the Igapó Bridge, which for more than three decades was the only link between the North and the rest of the city and by the Ulisses de Góis Viaduct, completed in 2002, which connects the Igapó Bridge with other relevant arteries of this natal Administrative Zone. With the construction of this last road component, there were profound dynamics in the transit system, not only in the Northern Zone, but also in the capital city. In this way, the present research aimed to understand the influence of the road complex on the dynamics imposed on the transit system and on the urban configurations of the capital of potiguar and the possible improvements (or not) brought by this highway work for the fluency of motor vehicles. Thus, through bibliographic research and field research carried out with the application of structured questionnaires to users and residents of the area in question, it was observed that, despite a considerable portion of users (48%), they affirmed that there was a significant improvement in the area's traffic (37%) considered that the impact of the construction of the viaduct to traffic flow was insignificant, since the construction of the viaduct did not contribute to the vehicles. It was realized, therefore, that it is necessary to endow the city with a planning focused on its reality, aiming to increase even more the flow of traffic in the capital of potiguar, through measures such as the increase of mass transport, making possible even more mobility urban and, thus, being a fairer and egalitarian city for all natalians.Keywords: Urban Space; Road Complex; Traffic.RESUMENEl complejo vial Ulisses de Góis ubicado en la porción Norte de la capital potiguar está compuesto por el Puente Ulisses de Góis, más conocido como Puente de Igapó, el cual fue durante más de tres décadas la única conexión entre la porción Norte con el resto de la ciudad y por el Viaducto Ulisses de Góis, concluido en 2002, el que interconecta el Puente de Igapó con otras relevantes arterias de esta Zona administrativa natalense. Con la construcción de este último componente viario, ocurrieron profundas dinámicas en el sistema de tránsito, no solamente en la Zona Norte como el de la capital potiguar. De esta forma, la presente investigación pretendió comprender la influencia del complejo vial en las dinámicas impuestas en el sistema de tránsito y en las propias configuraciones urbanas de la capital potiguar, y las posibles mejoras (o no) traídas por esta obra vial para la fluencia de los vehículos automotores. Por lo tanto, a través de investigaciones bibliográficas e investigaciones de campo, realizada con la aplicación de cuestionarios estructurados a usuarios y residentes del área en cuestión, se observó que: a pesar de la considerable proporción de los usuarios (48%) que afirman que ocurrió una significativa mejora en el tránsito de la zona, en el norte con la construcción del Viaducto Ulisses de Góis, una parte no menos importante (37%), considera que el impacto de la construcción del viaducto para la fluidez del tránsito fue insignificante, pues no contribuyó a la resolución de los problemas de circulación de los vehículos. Se percibió, que se hace necesario dotar a la ciudad de una planificación volcada hacia su realidad, con el objetivo de aumentar aún más la fluidez del tránsito en la capital potiguar, a través de medidas como el incremento del transporte de masa, posibilitando aún más la movilidad urbana y, así, constituyendo una ciudad más justa e igualitaria para todos los natalenses.Palabras clave: Espacio Urbano; Complejo Vial; Tráfico.

scholarly journals The Impact of Automated Vehicles on Traffic Flow and Road Capacity on Urban Road Networks

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Ji Eun Park ◽  
Wanhee Byun ◽  
Youngchan Kim ◽  
Hyeonjun Ahn ◽  
Doh Kyoum Shin
Keyword(s):  
Traffic Flow ◽  
Road Network ◽  
Traffic Volume ◽  
Transport Systems ◽  
Automated Vehicles ◽  
Average Delay ◽  
The Road ◽  
Capacity Increase ◽  
Road Capacity ◽  
The Impact

Automated vehicles (AVs) are believed to have great potential to improve the traffic capacity and efficiency of the current transport systems. Despite positive findings of the impact of AVs on traffic flow and potential road capacity increase for highways, few studies have been performed regarding the impact of AVs on urban roads. Moreover, studies considering traffic volume increase with a mixture of AVs and human-driven vehicles (HDVs) have rarely been conducted. Therefore, this study investigated the impact of gradual increments of AV penetration and traffic volume on urban roads. The study adopted a microsimulation approach using VISSIM with a Wiedmann 74 model for car-following behavior. Parameters for AVs were set at the SAE level 4 of automation. A real road network was chosen for the simulation having 13 intersections in a total distance of 4.5 km. The road network had various numbers of lanes from a single lane to five lanes in one direction. The network consists of a main arterial road and a parallel road serving nearby commercial and residential blocks. In total, 36 scenarios were investigated by a combination of AV penetrations and an increase in traffic volumes. The study found that, as AV penetration increased, traffic flow also improved, with a reduction of the average delay time of up to 31%. Also, as expected, links with three or four lanes had a more significant impact on the delay. In terms of road capacity increase, when the penetration of AVs was saturated at 100%, the road network could accommodate 40% more traffic.

TO THE QUESTION OF THE IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON THE ECOLOGICAL STATE OF ARTIFICIAL PLANTATIONS OF PITSUNDSKAYA PINE IN THE SEASIDE AREA OF GELENDZHIK

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizaveta Derevenets ◽  
Elizaveta Derevenets
Keyword(s):  
Negative Impact ◽  
Standard Technique ◽  
Negative Influence ◽  
Exhaust Gases ◽  
The Road ◽  
Industrial Enterprises ◽  
Federal Highway ◽  
On The Road ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City

Gelendzhik is the resort town, there aren't a lot of industrial enterprises here. The main pollutant is transport. The work purpose is the assessment of a condition of the artificial landings of a pine located along the Federal highway "Don" and landings, which is nearly the sea coast. Researches were conducted to a standard technique of the General vital state (A. S. Bogolyubov). The assessment of a condition of pines was carried out during 6 years: from 2010 to 2015. For carrying out research we used 6 experimental grounds on the Markotkhsky spine and 2 control grounds within the town. We investigated 24 trees on each platform, middle age of the trees were 30 - 40 years. Results. 1. The condition of trees in the pine forests located in immediate proximity with the Federal highway "Don" (No. 1, 2, 3) is unsatisfactory. As even weak influences of the majority of atmospheric gaseous pollutants (sulphurous gas, nitrogen oxides, etc.) give effect of a necrosis and hloroz of pine needles, the condition of pines is connected with technogenic pollution. So near the Federal highway "Don" the air environment is strongly polluted by exhaust gases. Information of 2012 confirm that negative influence of the route on Markotkh's vegetation decreases at reduction of load of the route. 2. On the sites located above on a slope (No. 4,5,6) thanks to remoteness and the wind mode intensity of influence of pollutants is lower and a condition of pines the quite satisfactory. 3. Trees on the sites located near the sea (No. 7,8) are in a good shape. Small deterioration of a state is noted in very droughty years. Conclusion. Results of six years' research show that the condition of the plantings which are in close proximity with the road worsens. It is explained by increase in intensity of the movement on the road, especially during a resort season. Gelendzhik is the city with a good ecological shape, but the damage to environment is already caused. If not to take measures, we can lose a unique part of the nature in the future, recreate it will be impossible. Measures of reduction of negative impact of exhaust gases were offered. Results of researches are transferred to ecological department of the City administration of Gelendzhik.

TO THE QUESTION OF THE IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON THE ECOLOGICAL STATE OF ARTIFICIAL PLANTATIONS OF PITSUNDSKAYA PINE IN THE SEASIDE AREA OF GELENDZHIK

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizaveta Derevenets ◽  
Elizaveta Derevenets
Keyword(s):  
Negative Impact ◽  
Standard Technique ◽  
Negative Influence ◽  
Exhaust Gases ◽  
The Road ◽  
Industrial Enterprises ◽  
Federal Highway ◽  
On The Road ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City

Gelendzhik is the resort town, there aren't a lot of industrial enterprises here. The main pollutant is transport. The work purpose is the assessment of a condition of the artificial landings of a pine located along the Federal highway "Don" and landings, which is nearly the sea coast. Researches were conducted to a standard technique of the General vital state (A. S. Bogolyubov). The assessment of a condition of pines was carried out during 6 years: from 2010 to 2015. For carrying out research we used 6 experimental grounds on the Markotkhsky spine and 2 control grounds within the town. We investigated 24 trees on each platform, middle age of the trees were 30 - 40 years. Results. 1. The condition of trees in the pine forests located in immediate proximity with the Federal highway "Don" (No. 1, 2, 3) is unsatisfactory. As even weak influences of the majority of atmospheric gaseous pollutants (sulphurous gas, nitrogen oxides, etc.) give effect of a necrosis and hloroz of pine needles, the condition of pines is connected with technogenic pollution. So near the Federal highway "Don" the air environment is strongly polluted by exhaust gases. Information of 2012 confirm that negative influence of the route on Markotkh's vegetation decreases at reduction of load of the route. 2. On the sites located above on a slope (No. 4,5,6) thanks to remoteness and the wind mode intensity of influence of pollutants is lower and a condition of pines the quite satisfactory. 3. Trees on the sites located near the sea (No. 7,8) are in a good shape. Small deterioration of a state is noted in very droughty years. Conclusion. Results of six years' research show that the condition of the plantings which are in close proximity with the road worsens. It is explained by increase in intensity of the movement on the road, especially during a resort season. Gelendzhik is the city with a good ecological shape, but the damage to environment is already caused. If not to take measures, we can lose a unique part of the nature in the future, recreate it will be impossible. Measures of reduction of negative impact of exhaust gases were offered. Results of researches are transferred to ecological department of the City administration of Gelendzhik.

scholarly journals Environmental Regulation and Exports: Evidence from the Comprehensive Air Pollution Policy in China

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 1316 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hong Chen ◽  
Yang Xu
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Environmental Regulation ◽  
Pollution Prevention ◽  
Firm Entry ◽  
Entry And Exit ◽  
Control Plan ◽  
Heterogeneous Effects ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City ◽  
Firm Entry And Exit

The impact of environmental regulation has been an important topic. Based on the Chinese Custom Database and China City Statistical Yearbook, this paper investigates the effect of environmental regulation on export values and explores potential mechanisms and heterogeneous effects. Taking advantage of China’s first comprehensive air pollution prevention and control plan, the Air Pollution Control in Key Zones policy, as a quasi-natural experiment, we employ the difference-in-differences method to examine the causal relationship between environmental regulation and exports. We find the statistically significant and negative effect of environmental regulation on exports at the city level. Moreover, we find that the potential mechanism is the change in export values caused by firm entry and exit, especially by exiters, rather than the change in the number of exporting firms in the city caused by firm entry and exit. In addition, we find the heterogeneous effects of environmental regulation based on the differences of environmental policy across cities and the Broad Economic Categories classification.

scholarly journals Measurements of urban traffic parameters before and after road reconstruction

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 365-376
Author(s):  
Andrzej Bąkowski ◽  
Leszek Radziszewski
Keyword(s):  
Urban Traffic ◽  
Noise Model ◽  
Vehicle Traffic ◽  
The Road ◽  
Passenger Vehicles ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Traffic Volumes ◽  
National Road ◽  
The City ◽  
Good Agreement

Abstract The study analyzed the parameters of vehicle traffic and noise on the national road in the section in the city from 2011 to 2016. In 2013–2014 this road was reconstructed. It was found that in most cases, the distribution of the tested variable was not normal. The median and selected percentiles of vehicle traffic parameters and noise were examined. The variability and type A uncertainty of the results were described and evaluated. The results obtained for the data recorded on working and non-working days were compared. The vehicle cumulative speed distributions, for two-way four-lane road segments in both directions were analyzed. A mathematical model of normalized traffic flow has been proposed. Fit factor R2 of the proposed equations to the experimental data for passenger vehicles ranges from 0.93 to 0.99. It has been shown that two years after the road reconstruction, the median noise level did not increase even though traffic volumes and vehicle speeds increased. The Cnossos noise model was validated for data recorded over a period of 6 years. A very good agreement of the medians determined according to the Cnossos-EU model and the measured ones was obtained. It should be noted, however, that for the other analyzed percentiles, e.g. 95%, the discrepancies are larger.

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