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VivaCity data to help Sheffield to tackle air pollution
Sheffield City Council installs 17 sensors from VivaCity to monitor traffic, improve air quality and keep track of the impact of the city’s new clean air zone.
VivaCity, the transport technology scaleup transforming cities into smarter and more efficient places to live and work, has partnered with Sheffield City Council to monitor the impact of the area’s newly introduced Clean Air Zone (CAZ).
A network of 17 VivaCity sensors have been deployed that will monitor general traffic flow on the outer ring road, increases and decreases in traffic, and the impact of the CAZ on pollutants such as Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2). Installed in March 2023, data will be gathered over the next three years to measure the impact on air quality and health.
The initiative comes as the UK grapples with the impact of air pollution that is linked to 36,000 deaths each year. Sheffield’s CAZ is a class C chargeable zone for the most polluting vehicles, including heavy goods vehicles (HGVs), light goods vehicles (LGVs) buses, coaches, vans, and taxis. Vehicles that do not meet emissions standards face a charge to enter the zone.
“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.”
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Greg Fell, Sheffield’s Director of Public Health for Sheffield City Council highlighted the urgency of tackling air pollution. “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,” he said.
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 analysing 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.”
VivaCity’s sustainable transport solution, Smart Traffic Monitoring, delivers a range of benefits for sustainable transport planning, monitoring and evaluation. VivaCity aims to help local authorities reduce emissions, decarbonise transport, and achieve net zero targets.
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How do VivaCity sensors measure traffic flow and pollutant levels?What impact does Sheffield’s Clean Air Zone have on NO2 emissions?How can data from IoT sensors support sustainable transport planning?What health benefits are expected from reducing air pollution in Sheffield?How does Smart Traffic Monitoring help local authorities achieve net zero?
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