This report begin with a summary of the goals for environmental policy that affect the transport sector, these being compared with the requirements proposed by environmental researchers. Then follows some calculations of emissions of air pollutants in Sweden, on the basis of the position before the catalytic converter began to have an effect. The part played by road traffic has diminished somewhat compared with earlier summaries, mostly because the emissions from other sources were previously underestimated. However, road traffic is considered to remain a major source of nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbons and carbon dioxide. It accounts for a large, but not dominating, proportion of the emissions of carbon dioxide. The report makes use of research results concerning the chemistry of the air pollutants and their biological and physiological effects in order to analyse how various countermeasures applied to the transport system influence the environmental situation in countries with large volumes of car traffic. General reductions of emissions are the most desirable, while there is also justification for local redistribution of the emissions as well as action to reduce emissions during a limited period of time. (A)
Abstract