Is air pollution from the transport sector decreasing in Europe?

Key messages

(19 Aug 2019)

• The annual EU limit value for nitrogen dioxide — one of the main air quality pollutants of concern, which is typically associated with vehicle emissions — was widely exceeded across Europe in 2017. Some 86 % of these exceedances were detected at roadside monitoring locations. 
• The EU limit values for the two categories of particulate matter (PM₁₀ and PM_2.5) were also widely exceeded in 2017. For PM_2.5, the percentage of exceedances recorded at traffic stations was very similar to that recorded at background stations. For PM₁₀, a higher percentage of exceedances was recorded at background stations than at traffic stations. This indicates the importance of other emission sources for these pollutants, such as commercial and institutional buildings, household heating, etc.

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