The cumulative effect of nuisances from road transportation in residential sectors on the Island of Montreal – Identification of the most exposed groups and areas

• Published in: Transportation research. Part D, Transport and environment Transport and environment, 2016-07, Vol.46, p.11-25
• Main Authors: Carrier, Mathieu, Apparicio, Philippe, Séguin, Anne-Marie, Crouse, Dan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Air pollution; Deprivation; Environmental equity; GIS; Minorities; Montreal; Nitrogen dioxide; Noise; Pollutants; Road traffic noise; Road transportation; Roads; Traffic engineering; Traffic flow
• ISSN: 1361-9209; 1879-2340
• DOI: 10.1016/j.trd.2016.03.005

•460 city blocks are considered disadvantaged.•The proportions of people under age 15 are higher in advantaged sectors.•People over 65 are negatively associated with the likelihood to live in advantaged areas.•Visible minorities are significantly overrepresented in advantaged areas. Air pollution and road traffic noise are considered to be the two most important nuisances that could negatively affect the quality of life. A prolonged exposure to high concentrations of these pollutants could conduct to various health problems. Studies in environmental equity have often considered these nuisances individually whenever it comes from the same source. The main objective of this paper is to determine if the 15years of age, those aged 65 and over, visible minorities and low income individuals located in a portion of the Island of Montreal are overrepresented in city blocks characterized by having among the highest levels of transportation-related air pollutants (i.e., ambient concentrations of NO2 and road traffic noise in decibels (dB(A)). The results show that low-income individuals and, to a lesser extent, visible minorities, are significantly overrepresented in city blocks characterized by the higher levels of NO2 and road traffic noise in dB(A). Multinomial logistic regression analysis confirms these results, and also shows that young people under 15years are under-represented in the most polluted areas. However, contrary to the previous bivariate results, people aged 65 and over are negatively and significantly associated with the likelihood of their living in a city block located in an advantaged area after controlling for the independent effects of the other explanatory variables. Moreover, visible minorities are significantly overrepresented in advantaged areas. Considering the observed results, some solutions are identified to reduce road traffic noise and air pollution in the city blocks localized near major traffic arteries.