A new study finds that about five Americans die every hour from exposure to toxic substances in road vehicles.
This is the latest warning that fossil fuel-powered transportation is a major driver of mortality.
The study found that more than 41,800 additional premature deaths in the United States will be attributable to road pollution in 2024 alone.
“Transportation emissions have real, everyday impacts on the health and safety of the communities we live in and represent,” said Paul Jones III, a transportation planner with the New York City Environmental Justice Alliance, a network of grassroots, community-based groups that reviewed the new research.
The analysis by the International Clean Transportation Council, a nonprofit research group, used measurements collected through sensors in partnership with the UK-based FIA Foundation to quantify emissions associated with the production and consumption of vehicle fuels. They then used methods established by academics to calculate the health effects of that pollution.
A growing share of Americans are concerned about exposure to environmental toxins and support stricter regulation by federal authorities, according to a poll.
“While many Americans are concerned about the impact of environmental toxins on the health of their families, public health officials cannot afford to ignore the impact of vehicle pollution on mortality and respiratory health,” said Jin Lingzhi, senior fellow at the International Council on Clean Transportation, in a statement.
The study also found that the United States causes more new cases of childhood asthma each year due to vehicle pollution than any other country. By 2024, children in the United States will account for one in 10 new cases of childhood asthma caused by vehicle pollution worldwide.
By accelerating the transition to zero-emission vehicles, decision makers could significantly reduce these negative impacts, the authors say. In fact, researchers found that reaching 100% market share for electric cars, trucks, and buses by 2040 could avert more than 100,000 premature deaths and prevent more than 42,000 children from developing asthma by 2050, compared to currently projected penetration rates.
Experts now say the country is moving in the wrong direction, with the Trump administration embarking on a major rollback on environmental issues and rescinding plans to accelerate the rollout of clean cars.
The analysis is the latest in a long line of expert recommendations about the dangers of toxic air. The American Lung Association found that nearly half of Americans were breathing in dangerous levels of airborne emissions last year, an increase from the previous year.
