Examining environmental exposure during travel – routing tool and population-level analysis

Urban dwellers are exposed to multiple environmental conditions when they move through the urban fabric. The environmental exposures depend on the dynamics of travel behavior as well as the spatiotemporal changes in the environment. We examine how environmental exposures during travel are analyzed in scientific literature and apply exposure-aware routing to examine exposures during travel at population level. We use Helsinki as our study area and explore exposures to noise, air pollution, and street-level greenery. The results show a significant spatial variation in exposure levels for people traveling in different parts of the city. Access to healthy travel environments is unequally distributed among the population of Helsinki. Exposure-aware routing shows a considerable improvement of exposures during walking and cycling when compared to the shortest routes. Further research with attention on different sociodemographic population groups and their access to healthy travel routes is needed. Understanding the associations of multiple environmental exposures and their effects on health and wellbeing supports evidence-based urban and transportation planning, and advances urban sustainability.