cars

Numerous studies have shown that automotive pollution has a wide range of negative health effects, including heart and lung disease. Much of the blame has been pinned on gases such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide and ozone, but the role of suspended particulate matter has been less clear.

From the Scholars Strategy Network, written by Doug Brugge, Tufts University School of Medicine.

Housing and automobiles in the United States generate almost 40% of the nation’s carbon dioxide emissions. Emissions vary with an area’s population density and weather patterns.  These in turn affect automotive and transit use, home heating, air conditioning and electricity usage.

By the very nature of their youth, teen drivers have little experience on the road. They also have a great comfort with and reliance on cell phones and other electronic devices, which have become a serious concern as a cause of distracted driving.

Bicycle commuting is a relatively common in many parts of Europe, China and India, but less so elsewhere. While it is gaining support in the United States — a federal tax break for bicycle commuters became law in 2008 — it remains significantly less popular here than abroad.

Some two million hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) have been sold in the United States since commercial production began in 1999. Among the advantages typically mentioned are that hybrids are cleaner, more energy-efficient and quieter. However, one of these apparent benefits carries with it potential risks for other road users, who are accustomed to an environment dominated by louder combustion-engine vehicles (CEVs).