The current traffic situation has enormous negative effects on health due to noise, pollutants and little movement of the population – from lung cancer to obesity. Many things might easily be avoided, says environmental doctor Hans-Peter Hutter.
Decreased lung function, higher risk of asthma, lung cancer, respiratory infections, cardiovascular diseases, reduced fitness, obesity, impaired brain function and a possibly increased risk of developing Alzheimer’s – the current traffic situation has enormous negative effects on health. Enormous damage is caused by noise, fine dust pollution and accidents, according to a press conference by the Austrian Traffic Club (VCÖ) on Tuesday. “There are many effects that you don’t see on the radar at all,” confirmed environmental doctor Hans-Peter Hutter from Med Uni Vienna.
The VCÖ calculates that the pollution alone leads to hundreds of additional deaths every year. Even in the Corona year 2020, the pollutant load in Austria was well above the guideline values recommended by the WHO (the EU has other, broader guideline values). If the WHO guideline values for particulate matter and nitrogen oxide were observed, 1,500 deaths might be avoided in Vienna alone, said VCÖ expert Lina Mosshammer. “Even low levels of air pollution are bad for the body, especially if pollutants are inhaled every day. Medical organizations have long pointed out that the legal requirements for particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide are too lax,” says Hutter.
The negative consequences of traffic pollutants are particularly great in cities, especially along busy roads such as city entrances. The pollutants impair the respiratory tract, lung function and the cardiovascular system. Therefore, increased measures are needed to greatly reduce traffic pollution, also to reduce traffic noise, which also has health effects.
Tempo 30 the solution?
A central means for this would be a continuous 30 km/h in the cities, according to the VCÖ. Tempo 30 instead of 50 affects the human ear like halving the traffic volume, says Mosshammer. Incidentally, electric cars can only demonstrate their advantage of being quieter up to a speed of 30 km/h. In addition, traffic calming promotes alternative mobility, such as cycling.
Because apart from noise and pollutants, car traffic also has an impact on how much the population moves in everyday life. Obesity is a growing problem, especially among children, says Hutter. “The older the children get, the less they move.”
Changed mobility and switching from cars to cycling and walking make an important contribution to promoting health. Hutter speaks of a “win-win-win situation”: “More exercise is health-promoting, a precaution for climate and environmental protection and also saves costs,” says Hutter.
Because the CO2 emissions from traffic and the negative effects on climate change must also be included in the calculation. The population is already suffering from the heat in summer, including the negative effects on health. While there were an average of 15 hot days with temperatures of 30 degrees Celsius or more per year in Vienna between 1981 and 2010, there were already 28 between 2011 and 2021. These will increase in the future.
trouble spots
The VCÖ collects problem areas throughout Austria where perceived noise and pollution are particularly high and passes them on to communities and decision-makers. The population can still make entries until the end of March:
(twi/APA)
