5 November 2014
Intelligent Transport Systems Seminar
INTELLIGENT TRANSPORT SYSTEMS SEMINAR
Smart Environment Interest Group
South Queensferry – 21 October 2014
John Webster attended this day seminar on behalf of Transform Scotland. The event covered a wide range of topics relating to ways of reducing emissions and covered both practical aspects as well as technological advance. Unfortunately, the speaker on “Engine Technology” was unable to make the event so the engines of the future did not feature.
The seminar was opened by Prof. Margaret Bell (Newcastle University) with the view that the 1960-1990s were the pro-car decades but congestion and air pollution along with climate change concerns is leading us to a less-motorised society. ITS aims to provide the tools to reduce the need to travel combined with technological innovation that will reduce emissions from vehicles.
Stephen Thomson (Transport Scotland) mentioned that air pollution is estimated to cause about 7 million deaths globally each year. The UK is bad in this respect and is currently being fined by the EU for failing to meet air pollution targets in many cities despite having had a couple of decades to meet the targets. Emissions from new cars are lowering as a result of improved technology but the numbers of cars are increasing so little overall improvement. The result is that Scotland has 32 Local Air Quality Management Areas in place; generally locations where air quality standards fail on a daily basis.
The subject of Street Level Monitoring was covered by Stephen Stratton (Ricardo AEA) whose Group has been looking at the effect of sampling height during street level monitoring of parameters such as PM10, NO2, CO2 and others. This study was carried out in Glasgow in busy city centre locations like George Square and Sauchiehall Street. This study showed a concentration gradient exists dependent on parameter and the micro-environment such as building size and meteorology so this needs to be considered during measurement.
Low Cost Monitoring Systems was the topic of Jacqueline Barr (IBI Group) which had tested a range of different models of air quality monitors for particulates and gases. This study suggested that cross-sensitivity can be a problem if a mixture of pollutants is present and that significant variations in results can be observed between instruments. The manufacturers are generally supportive and willing to learn from the study.
The Traffic Pollution Impact of a Low Emission Zone by Paul Goodman (Newcastle University) used PITHEM modelling software for a range of scenarios over the study period 2010-2021 using the Newcastle/Gateshead area, which includes the Metro Centre. The scenarios modelled the impact on air pollutants from the shift of vehicles to a Euro 4/5/6 standards etc. and for mix of HGV, bus, car. Not surprisingly, the best results were for all vehicles at Euro 6 standard.
Local Solutions to air quality issues was discussed by Kenny Bisset (Fife Council). Mention was made, in some detail, of a study in Cupar, which suffers localised poor air quality as a result of the A91 and A914 roads meeting in the central area. Cost effective ways of improving air quality included relocation of queuing traffic, altering traffic flow by lane changes, and improved air flow by creating gaps in buildings. The ideal would be to build a by-pass but this would be an expensive option.
Peter Cullen (Transport Scotland) spoke on Delivering Sustainable Messages using the Transport Scotland Information Service. The type of information disseminated includes road works/accidents etc. and the aim is to influence user demand and minimise congestion. Communication systems are developing rapidly and use is currently made of mobile devices, tablets and smart phones using platforms such as Twitter, Reddit, Facebook and others. Real time information provision is the goal and added value information such as charging points for electric vehicles and a carbon calculator are also available.
Michael Foster (Transport Scotland) spoke on Electric Charging for vehicles and highlighted that Scotland now has about 1130 charging points, compared with 6345 over the whole of the UK. The aim is to have points at 35 mile intervals across the whole of the main road network. Rapid charging is also being rolled out and the future intention is to link to renewable energy where practical and, in this way, contribute to meeting the Scottish Government’s ambition of a decarbonised transport system by 2050.
Air Quality Monitoring Tools was discussed by Alan Hills (SEPA) who has been looking at the collection of air quality, traffic volume and other data and its subsequent processing to produce meaningful summary outputs, usually in graphical format. This approach also allows ‘what if’ scenarios to be modelled and the tools available on the web for the dissemination of information have made this task much easier.
Richard Bellingham (Strathclyde University) spoke on Holistic Solutions for Future Cities and the shape they need to take to cater for growing and aging populations and the impact of new technology. It all leads to the design of cities that have good transport, flexible economies and sustainable systems for the supply of food, energy and finance. In essence, the development of communicative cities that are designed to be resilient to environmental change and designed in a holistic manner.
A Low Emission Strategy for Scotland was the final talk of the day given by Stephen Thomson (Transport Scotland) who discussed the need for new technologies to reduce vehicle emissions.
All in all, an interesting and varied programme of talks although John Webster’s view is that much of it seemed to tinker round the edges and relies on future technology to solve the problems of poor air quality and greenhouse gas emissions. There was no talk of the bolder moves being adopted by many of our continental cities that are banning traffic from large areas of the city centre and investing in good quality public transport and cycling infrastructure to provide attractive alternatives to commuters.