Development of a Spatially-transferable and Temporally-resolved Urban Corridor Air and Noise pollution model: STUCAN

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Air and noise pollution are a global health and environmental burden. Within Canada the population continues to urbanize, which concentrates many pollution sources. This research program, will create air pollution and noise pollution models that are capable of predicting pollution impacts from sustainable transportation development, specifically light rail transportation in urban corridors, and model background urban pollution. The research is conducted on two Canadian cities, with the objective of being able to be implemented in any Canadian urban area. All levels of governments in Canada are investing in new rapid transit infrastructure to counter rising levels of traffic congestion, and related negative social, economic, and environmental impacts. Eleven light rail transit (LRT) lines (145.6 km of track) are planned or under construction in Canada, with construction start dates ranging from 2011 to 2021. Construction across the country of planned and on-going projects will continue until at least 2030. These LRT projects require building dedicated surface rail infrastructure along highly populated urban corridors and have anticipated construction periods ranging from four to more than 10 years. The proposed research aims to develop an air and noise pollution model that can predict air and noise pollution conditions in urban areas prior-to and during construction. ***This proposed research program holds significance in terms of understanding the air and noise quality impacts of sustainable transportation development, and in developing cutting edge tools for the modelling of environmental pollution from transport sources. The work centres around two key questions: 1) What will be the air quality and noise impacts of light rail transit (LRT) construction in urban Canada. 2) How can we improve upon the state-of-practice in urban air pollution modelling methods. Understanding what the air quality and noise impacts of sustainable transportation development are, will allow Canadians planning opportunities to minimize potential health risks. Within the research field, many air and noise pollution models are limited in use to the location where they were developed. This research program investigates why models tend to be local and what are the factors affecting their use in other cities, which will guide the design of models capable for use in multiple cities within Canada. This research holds both significant contributions related to pollution modelling methods, and the development of evidence to support sustainable transportation planning. By offering an understanding of the change in air and noise quality associated with the construction of major infrastructure projects, this research program will contribute evidence to aid in the planning and risk assessment of rapid transit lines in Canada, and globally.