New York City subway riders are breathing in hazardous air, study finds
Study shows average platform has four times the level of pollution exposure deemed safe by EPA
New York City subway riders are breathing in hazardous air, with Black and Hispanic commuters exposed to higher levels of pollution, a new study shows.
New York University researchersfound that the average subway platform had four times the particulate pollution (PM2.5) exposure standard deemed safe over a 24-hour period by the Environmental Protection Agency, and nine times the exposure guideline set by the World Health Organization.
The researchers note that although commuting time is only a portion of the entire day, riding the subway accounts for a significant portion of a person’s daily exposure to PM2.5.
“At that size, these particles penetrate the lung, and it’s been shown that small particles cause issues with cardiovascular, respiratory and neurological diseases,” said Masoud Ghandehari, the lead researcher and a professor of urban systems engineering at New York University. “We have 5 million riders per day. Imagine the human impact one may be having in a single day in the New York City subway system.”
