Dean Venables

Vans top table of London’s road polluters as black cabs go green Taxis were the greatest source of toxic nitrogen oxides six years ago, but the rise of electric hybrids has reduced their emissions

"Vans have become the biggest road source of a deadly air pollutant in central London."

🚛Indeed, diesel van deliveries cost London alone more than £2 billion per year in hidden costs.

Planning granted to upgrade key cycling and pedestrian route for Passage West Regional reports from the Irish Examiner team

Planning granted to upgrade key cycling and pedestrian route for Passage West

www.irishexaminer.com/news/munster...

Irish Rail reveals locations and details of 8 new Cork station Eight new stations for -- Blarney/Stoneview, Monard, Blackpool/Kilbarry, Tivoli, Dunkettle, Ballynoe, Carrigtwohill West and Water-Rock -- are a key part of the plan for an upgraded and electrified Cork area rail network. Non-statutory public consultation on Phase 2 of the Cork Area Commuter Rail Programme starts today with Irish Rail publishing its Emerging Preferred Option for the upgrades that are planned to support up to 16 million passenger journeys a year.

Irish Rail reveals locations and details of 8 new Cork station

Eight new stations for -- Blarney/Stoneview, Monard, Blackpool/Kilbarry, Tivoli, Dunkettle, Ballynoe, Carrigtwohill West and Water-Rock -- are a key part of the plan for an upgraded and electrified Cork area rail network. Non-statutory…

Promoting urban air quality resilience through communication: A stakeholder needs mapping and prioritisation study informed by design thinking Air pollution (AP) poses significant global health risks and exacerbates socio-economic inequities, especially in urban contexts. This study mapped st…

🚨New paper out!
@maricacassarino.bsky.social @dvenables.bsky.social and I mapped #AirQuality communication needs in Cork using #DesignThinking.

Findings? Strategies must inform, empower, and tackle systemic barriers

Read here www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Dieselgate pollution killed 16,000 people in UK, study estimates Experts decry lack of UK government action and warn a further 6,000 early deaths could occur

Findings that should be a call to action for governments to urgently get high polluting vehicles off the roads.

“Millions of diesel cars on our roads are still emitting toxically high levels of pollution and it’s costing our health, especially the health of our children” - @mumsforlungs.bsky.social

Good riddance, robot trees, now let’s really go green on Pana A totally car-free Patrick Street, a Bike Library, and more real trees are some of the ideas KATHRIONA DEVEREUX has now the robot trees have bit the ...

@echolive.bsky.social on the RoboTrees:
www.echolive.ie/corkviews/ar...
Yes, many other things would have been a better spend. Let's focus on reducing emissions at source, esp. burning stuff...solid fuels, petrol & diesel.

Ballina man stages protest over parking on footpaths | Nenagh Guardian A MAN from Ballina staged a protest outside the Civic Offices in Nenagh on Monday last as part of a desperate bid to persuade Tipperary County Council to stop cars and lorries parking on footpaths in the scenic village.

He's 100 % right to protest, this is an issue in every single village, town and city in Ireland without question!

Gardai and councils largely ignore it by choice.

A brilliant event — so great to meet everyone. Some great paths in #Ballincollig for #walking and #cycling. Also much more to do with some obvious wins.
Active travel essential to get Bcollig moving again.

It's only 1/2 done, but #TuckeySt reimagining is looking very positive to a formerly dreary part of #Cork.
Wonderful to see pedestrianisation bringing life back to the street.
Well done to CorkCityCouncil!😀
@what-if-cork.bsky.social
@tripeanddrisheen.bsky.social

Why is there no health warning on a wood stove?

Wood smoke contains most of the same carcinogens as tobacco smoke, including benzene and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

Tobacco products have had health warning messages for years - it's time for stoves to have the same. #AirPollution #Health

Cork Views: Light rail project is central to Cork’s future The landmark light rail network in Cork has moved a step closer, and all stakeholders should pull together to make it happen, says CONOR HEALY, CEO ...

More support for light rail in #Cork from #CorkChamber:
www.echolive.ie/corkviews/ar....

I particularly welcome route changes to include Ballincollig town centre. Would be a game-changer for shops & help reduce the traffic woes.👍
@corkcyclingcrew.bsky.social

Catherine Conlon: Cork Luas will improve health outcomes for generations Children's ability to move around our city independently of cars, reduced noise pollution and increased exercise for all users will have a massive impact

Great comments from Catherine, weaving together the multifacetted relationship between health & mobility of different types.
www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/comm...
@corkcyclingcrew.bsky.social @what-if-cork.bsky.social @conndonovan.bsky.social @irishdocsenv.bsky.social
@eriuccs.bsky.social

Dublin’s community cargo bicycle trial clocks up over 4,000km Dublin City Council's community cargo bicycle trial, an initiative that aims to "offer residents and businesses a cost-effective way to use electric cargo bikes for everyday tasks and deliveries", is to switch into phase two. The community cargo project was launched in May 2024, and is a collaboration between the council's Environment and Transportation section and the Beta unit in Corporate Services and Transformation.

Dublin’s community cargo bicycle trial clocks up over 4,000km

Dublin City Council's community cargo bicycle trial, an initiative that aims to "offer residents and businesses a cost-effective way to use electric cargo bikes for everyday tasks and deliveries", is to switch into phase two. The…

Does Cork Luas have a capacity problem?

Journey time from Ballincollig to City Centre up to 35 minutes from original 27 Very little priority given to trams, it’s going to slow the tram down The preferred route is not future-proofed Cork Deserves better Feljin Jose - Green Spokesperson for Transport

It’s absolutely insane how congested Cork is, and we need to demand better to ensure that Cork isn’t locked into the same thing for decades and decades Cork is one of the fastest growing cities in Ireland, so we really do need this capacity to fuel the growth of the city It’s taking a twisty route through suburbs which is going to involve a lot of turns, slower speeds and will bring down capacity Ciarán Meers - Cork Commuter Coalition

Answers are needed as to why the number of predicted passenger journeys have dropped from 46 million to 16 million If that’s due to inefficiencies in the planned route, sharing road space with traffic or a reduction in frequency, then that has to be addressed The outline I was given is that a second public consultation could happen in 2026 and a railway order sought in 2027. Construction would then take five to six years. That’s the kind of pace of timeline we need Oliver Moran - Green Party Councillor in Cork

Reduced capacity and slower journeys? It's not looking great for Cork Luas. Here's what others are saying.

Draft route for 'long-awaited' €1bn Cork Luas light rail system unveiled The proposed route runs 18km from Ballincollig in the west to Mahon Point in the east, with 25 stops along the way

Really delighted to see govt get serious about modern public transport outside Dublin:
bit.ly/42erl8b
Cork tram will be a huge asset to the city & I'm esp pleased to see that it won't be used on the Blackrock greenway.👍
Time to build Lee2Sea Greenway 😀 for attractive active travel options too!❤️

Looks brilliant.
Let's start to see some of this in #Cork, #Limerick, #Galway, #Waterford.
This is good, and not just for climate, air quality, equity, noise, heatlh, economic, or public realm benefits.😀

Great news! Corks TFI bikes are being installed along the Marina Promenade and just behind Páirc Uí Chaoimh.

Love this!😀

www.nature.com/articles/d41...

New research finds that Wildlife Trust natural flood management schemes deliver £10 of benefits for every £1 invested | The Wildlife Trusts Government and businesses urged to invest in beaver dams, bogs and ponds

We've published fantastic new research today showing that natural flood management works, and delivers ten times the benefits compared to costs over 30 years. From beavers to re-wiggled rivers to wild driveways, #letnaturehelp

#NFM #Climate #Nature #adapt 🧪

www.wildlifetrusts.org/news/new-res...

Nitrogen dioxide a big problem, but we also now have really good technological fixes.
Induction stoves are fantastic...our one is MUCH faster than our old gas hob with much superior levels of control.
I'd never consider going back to gas on function alone, let alone health benefits.

"Air pollution is the second leading cause of human death worldwide ...," attributed to Kimberly Prather and Kelley Barsanti, displayed on a red background.

"To protect public health everywhere, air quality standards must be modernized, advanced instrumentation mobilized, and collaborative networks established to move air quality assessment into the 21st century," note @kprather.bsky.social and Kelley Barsanti in a new #ScienceEditorial. scim.ag/41BFV80

'Transformative' improvements to be made on more than 20 Cork bus routes Driver recruitment and training have been accelerated, and minimum driver levels have been achieved, the NTA said.

Some encouraging promises on #bus service in #Cork. 👍

Let's see how this goes. Urgently need buses, along with more walking & much more cycling, to address Cork's traffic chaos.
Thanks to cllrs who're addressing the issue
@horganp.bsky.social, Thomas Gould & others
www.echolive.ie/corknews/ari...

2/2
With thanks to external examiner Weidong Chen from ULCO, internal examiner Stig Hellebust & independent chair Ken Browne.

All the best for a bright future, Eibhlin!

Delighted to celebrate newly-minted PhD, Eibhlin Halpin, for wonderful work on air pollutant NO2 and sensor development!
Well done for sticking it out through covid, building a solid foundation for new sensor methods & getting some great data on pollution from school travel.
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London air pollution down since Ulez extended to outer boroughs, study finds Levels of deadly pollutants have dropped, with significant improvements in capital’s most deprived areas

Great news from a comprehensive study of London's ULEZ:

📉 nitrogen dioxide levels are down 27%

📉 small particle emissions are 31% lower in outer London than they would have been if ULEZ wasn't expanded

✅ air quality is better across 99% of monitoring sites

www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Impressive outcomes for #London #airquality😀
#Paris also greatly reduced NO2 by prioritising cycling & walking👍
Time for ULEZ, congestion charges, & more bike lanes in #Ireland & #Cork❤️
@irishcyclingcmpn.bsky.social
@irishdocsenv.bsky.social
@what-if-cork.bsky.social
@corkcyclingcrew.bsky.social

The dangers of air pollution for heart health | Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Harvard Chan environmental health experts explain how air pollution affects the heart.

hsph.harvard.edu/news/the-dan...

Dr John Collins @irishdocsenv.bsky.social highlights roles of government, corporations and individuals to tackle air pollution from fossil fuels use.

Exposure to NO2 in late pregnancy can increase chance of NICU admission by 35% A new study from the University at Buffalo has identified a correlation between exposure to air pollution in late pregnancy and the risk of neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admissions. The team use...

Eye-watering impact of traffic-pollutant nitrogen dioxide (NO2) on neonatal ICU admissions
bit.ly/4bdaa9z
Abstract from the Nature study:
"Despite rel low-moderate US exposure levels, traffic-related pollutants...appear to increase overall adverse health risks for newborns"
@johnwenger9.bsky.social

School Streets Greater Manchester is helping transform the school run, putting measures in place that promote cycling, scooting and walking and restricting access to motorised vehicles at school start and finish…

“School streets are a total joy! The air smells and tastes completely different."
(Quote from a #Manchester parent).

#GreaterManchester people - talk to your headteacher about #SchoolStreets after half term. Transport for GM is looking for schools to register their interest!