EXPOSURE OF DRIVERS AND CONDUCTORS TO NOISE, HEAT, DUST AND VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS IN THE STATE TRANSPORT SPECIAL BUSES OF KOLKATA CITY

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

2003

Subject Area

infrastructure - vehicle, ridership - drivers, place - urban, mode - bus

Keywords

Xylene, Urban areas, Under developed countries, Toluene, Threshold limit value, Third world, Temperature, Summer, Special purpose buses, Sound level meters, Sampling, Pollutants, Phenylmethane, Organic compounds, Noise sources, Noise pollution, Noise meters, Noise, Motor vehicle operators, Methylbenzene, Less developed countries, Kolkata (India), Humidity, Heat, Gas chromatography, Emissions, Dust, Drivers, Developing countries, Conductors (Buses), Benzene

Abstract

Drivers and conductors of special state buses in Kolkata, India are subjected to a variety of environmental stresses. This paper studies the exposure of these workers to noise, heat, respirable dust and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Equivalent noise exposures of drivers at work and in-bus noise are evaluated using a precision noise level meter. Thermal conditions like wet bulb globe temperature, relative humidity, and dry-bulb temperature were measured over three bus routes. Personal sampling techniques are adopted for dust and VOC monitoring and gas chromatography with flame ionization detector was used to estimate VOCs. Mean dust exposures for drivers and conductors were found to be much higher than recommended levels, and exposure to benzene, toluene and xylene exhibited higher results than reported elsewhere. Conditions were more acute during the summer because of thermal stress. Drivers undertaking three consecutive trips within the city traffic routes experienced noise exposure that exceeded the recommended threshold limit value, mostly after a second trip.

Comments

Transportation Research Part D Home Page: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/13619209

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