ESTIMATION OF VEHICULAR EMISSION LOAD ALONG A SELECTED ROAD CORRIDOR IN DELHI

Abstract

Globally, vehicular emissions are recognized as the main source of air pollution in urban areas. The trend of urbanization has led to a surge in private vehicle ownership, particularly in metropolitan cities such as Delhi, India, resulting in significant growth of the automobile sector. Additionally, Delhi has experienced a considerable influx of people migrating from neighboring states in the past decade, leading to higher demand for transportation facilities. The growing number of vehicles has a direct impact on air pollution by causing higher fuel consumption and increased traffic congestion. The activity of vehicles on congested roads, including sudden acceleration and deceleration, significantly affects emissions. As a result, precise estimation of vehicular emissions is critical in developing systematic pollution mitigation strategies. This study focuses on the estimation of vehicular emission loads along a selected road corridor in Delhi, aiming to evaluate the effectiveness of various mitigation policies. Utilizing the CPCB VKT method, the emissions of key pollutants including Carbon Monoxide (CO), Hydrocarbons (HC), Particulate Matter (PM), Nitrogen Oxides (NOx), and Carbon Dioxide (CO2) were measured. Multiple scenarios were developed to analyze the impact of different policies, and these were compared with the Business-As-Usual (BAU) scenario to determine their effectiveness. The results provide valuable insights into the potential benefits of implementing specific strategies to reduce vehicular emissions and improve air quality in urban settings. Scenario 1,2 and 3 reduces the vehicular pollution significantly. So, we can say that adopting electric vehicle will help to curb vehicular pollution more efficiently.