NYC subway air disproportionately affects Black and Hispanic riders, according to a newly published NYU study.
Published in the scientific journal PLOS One, researchers from the NYU Tandon School of Engineering mocked the daily commutes of approximately 3.1 million subway users to measure their exposure to particulate matter pollution, otherwise known as PM25.
Through data composited to create a NYC Air Pollution Exposure Map, they measured exposure based on an origin or a destination. According to researchers, PM25 occurs in the subway system due to the wearing down of rails, wheels, and brakes. The pollutant particles are typically inhaled and can lead to both short-term and long-term issues such as cardiovascular disease and other breathing issues.
Concentrations were found to be typically higher on both subway cars and train stations, although the latter were considered to have higher rates on account of a lack of air purifying systems.
Overall, train cars and platforms had 7 and 10 times more than the guideline the World Health Organization set as the limit to PM25 exposure.
According to the researchers, as Black and Hispanic riders tend to have longer rides, they are exposed to 35% and 23% higher rates of pollutants, respectively, when compared to white and Asian riders.
Residents in neighborhoods located in upper Manhattan, such as Washington Heights and Inwood, had the highest exposure rates, while those in midtown and parts of Queens, where subways tended to be less accessible, had some of the lowest.
“People who travel further are more vulnerable because they are exposed to the particulate matter for longer times,” said lead researcher Masoud Ghandehari per Bloomberg News. “A person of higher economic background will also probably have a less adverse response to poor air quality because their baseline health is already better than a person in a low economic background.”
The latest findings reported by NYU come a little over three years after nonprofit RMI reported that Black NYC residents are also at a higher risk of inhaling the pollutant because of their residential buildings.
As a result of residential gas combustion, they were exposed to the same particles at an increased 32% rate. Overall, BIPOC communities in general were exposed to approximately 17% more of PM25 than the average rate of exposure.
With the poorer air quality, Black New Yorkers are more likely to be diagnosed with respiratory diseases like lung cancer, bronchitis and asthma.
To help address some of these health issues, Ghandehari hopes the MTA will consider making some changes below.
“I think the responsibility is with the agency to ensure that the environment is safe for people to use because the intent of the subway was to make things easier for people,” he said per Bloomberg News.
