Go Back  Bike Forums > Bike Forums > Advocacy & Safety
Reload this Page >

Cyclists and air pollution

Notices
Advocacy & Safety Cyclists should expect and demand safe accommodation on every public road, just as do all other users. Discuss your bicycle advocacy and safety concerns here.

Cyclists and air pollution

Old 12-20-18, 03:20 PM
  #26  
CB HI
Cycle Year Round
 
CB HI's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Honolulu, HI
Posts: 13,644
Mentioned: 6 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1316 Post(s)
Liked 92 Times in 59 Posts
Originally Posted by mr_bill
I'm sure there is a scholarly paper published somewhere that shows such a steep air pollution fall off at a road. I suspect I know who paid for such a "study."

-mr .bill
Right back at you for your studies.
__________________
Land of the Free, Because of the Brave.
CB HI is offline  
Old 12-20-18, 05:10 PM
  #27  
LV2TNDM
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Northern CA
Posts: 731

Bikes: Cannondale tandems: '92 Road, '97 Mtn. Mongoose 10.9 Ti, Kelly Deluxe, Tommaso Chorus, Cdale MT2000, Schwinn Deluxe Cruiser, Torker Unicycle, among others.

Mentioned: 5 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 275 Post(s)
Liked 201 Times in 127 Posts
Originally Posted by CliffordK
Interesting conclusion. I think a lot would depend on routes and time on the road.

I rarely encounter places where I can ride faster than vehicles. On a good day, I might ride half the speed of a car. Less active, maybe 1/3 the speed of a car. So, that means I'm outside 2x to 3x as long.

Passing cars on the right can also lead to problems such as right hooks and cars pulling out in front of a person.

I'm not sure how the AC and air recirculation works in cars, but it would be easy enough to incorporate HEPA filters into the AC systems, as long as divers were willing to clean or change the filters periodically.

Of course, I avoid the freeways as much as possible. I like to do loops in my rides, but incorporate less busy roads and greenways as much as possible/practical. Thus, I can avoid a fair amount of vehicle smoke, but would still be exposed to environmental smoke. Forest Fire smoke?
Recirculation does nothing to address vehicle occupants breathing all sorts of unknown VOCs emanating from the vehicle's interior. A HEPA filter won't do anything. However, a carbon-activated respirator would!

That "new car smell" is a toxic soup. Gee, I wonder why I haven't seen any extensive studies into these toxins and their effect on people. I know that Marin Co. has paradoxically high cancer rates among some groups, and this is within a region with four low-cancer cities. Here we have a high wealth demographic that tends to have access to quality foods and water and high exercise rates and generally tends to embrace healthy habits. So why the cancer spikes? Well, I'm guessing that the average vehicle age in Marin Co. is much lower than the national average, and even lower than the California and Bay Area average. The newer the car, the higher the concentration of VOC offgassing is my supposition.
LV2TNDM is offline  
Old 12-20-18, 05:40 PM
  #28  
JoeyBike
20+mph Commuter
 
JoeyBike's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: New Orleans, LA USA
Posts: 7,491

Bikes: Surly LHT, Surly Lowside, a folding bike, and a beater.

Mentioned: 31 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1422 Post(s)
Liked 315 Times in 210 Posts
Originally Posted by rseeker
We can't kick our fossil fuel addiction soon enough. Bring on the electrics.
Powered by Pixie dust no doubt. Unless your power comes from coal or oil burning power plants. Then we are just burning fossil fuels but not getting the blood on our hands. Also there are nuclear powered Pixie dust generators. A whole different level of problems.

Aside from this, I found the OP write up encouraging. I always thought I was sucking up more toxic soup than people in cars.
JoeyBike is offline  
Old 12-20-18, 05:42 PM
  #29  
JoeyBike
20+mph Commuter
 
JoeyBike's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: New Orleans, LA USA
Posts: 7,491

Bikes: Surly LHT, Surly Lowside, a folding bike, and a beater.

Mentioned: 31 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1422 Post(s)
Liked 315 Times in 210 Posts
Originally Posted by downhillmaster

Wear a mask/respirator while outside of your house.
Problem solved.
Like putting a Band-Aid on skin cancer. Not a long term solution.
JoeyBike is offline  
Old 12-20-18, 09:37 PM
  #30  
rseeker
Senior Member
 
rseeker's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2016
Location: Southeast US
Posts: 937
Mentioned: 9 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 318 Post(s)
Liked 149 Times in 104 Posts
Originally Posted by JoeyBike
Powered by Pixie dust no doubt. Unless your power comes from coal or oil burning power plants. Then we are just burning fossil fuels but not getting the blood on our hands. Also there are nuclear powered Pixie dust generators. A whole different level of problems
Right, nuclear pixie dust comes with problems. However, according to what I've read, it does have the benefit of being low carbon and doesn't depend on the weather (sun doesn't have to shine, wind doesn't have to blow) making it suitable for baseload residential power.

However, both solar and wind are now cheaper than coal. Greenhouse gases aside, it doesn't make economic sense to burn coal for power any more, in many cases. Here's two U.S. power companies deciding it's cheaper to tear down old coal plants and replace with solar than to keep those old things running. https://qz.com/1490832/two-utilities-promised-to-go-100-carbon-free-last-week/

And here's a pretty great overview of our energy choices, thinking about emissions and other practical concerns. https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/eve...ricity-systems

Last edited by rseeker; 12-20-18 at 11:20 PM.
rseeker is offline  
Old 12-20-18, 10:49 PM
  #31  
wphamilton
Senior Member
 
wphamilton's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: Alpharetta, GA
Posts: 15,280

Bikes: Nashbar Road

Mentioned: 71 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2934 Post(s)
Liked 341 Times in 228 Posts
Originally Posted by CB HI
The bell curve for heavier than air pollution is steeper than a 50% level at the right of the road. Closer to about two standard divisions or slightly more.

Canyon effects raise the pollution levels for everyone but still follow a bell curve. It does not reach an across the board equal concentration.
Yes it does drop off sharply even to the edge of the road, but the concentrations on and near heavily trafficked roads are still so high that getting a block away is vastly better.
wphamilton is offline  
Related Topics
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Bikeforumuser0022
Advocacy & Safety
5
10-03-15 10:15 PM
Canadian_giant
Road Cycling
117
09-14-15 09:38 AM
GeorgeBMac
Fifty Plus (50+)
46
02-19-13 08:03 PM
randya
Advocacy & Safety
51
02-10-11 02:20 PM
nicomachus
Advocacy & Safety
72
12-16-10 09:29 AM

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off


Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.