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The city of Sheffield, England has partnered with VivaCity to implement a three-year monitoring program to assess the impact of the city’s newly introduced clean air zone (CAZ). Clean Air Zones are areas within a city where a local authority has brought measures into place to improve the air quality. The CAZ in Sheffield is a class C chargeable zone which includes the most polluting heavy goods vehicles (HGVs), light goods vehicles (LGVs), vans, buses, coaches, and taxis.
“When it comes to air pollution the evidence is clear – there is no safe limit,” said Sheffield’s director of public health, Greg Fell. “In Sheffield alone, air pollution contributes to between 250 to 500 deaths each year, and causes life threatening illnesses such as strokes, lung cancer and cardiovascular disease. Children and the elderly are particularly vulnerable to the damage caused by air pollution. For children, the effects begin as early as the baby’s first weeks in the womb.”
VivaCity will install a network of 17 of its AI sensors to gather accurate and detailed general traffic flow on the city’s outer ring road, as well as increases and decreases in traffic, and the impact of CAZ in pollutants. These are co-located with air quality sensors that capture the environmental and health benefits of reduced vehicle activity.
Mark Nicholson, CEO and Co-Founder at VivaCity, stated: “With the implementation of the government’s Clean Air Plan and Clean Air Zones, it is crucial to monitor traffic flow, emissions, and air quality. Working with Sheffield City Council, we look forward to gathering this data and analyzing the impact of the new CAZ. Improving air quality and reducing pollutants is an important cause to the VivaCity team, and we hope to continue delivering sustainable transport plans based on real-world evidence.”