For some time now, major cities in the UK have been experiencing high levels of air pollution, pushing local authorities to up their game on solving the problem. In an effort to help alleviate the issue, the country’s biggest bus and rail operator – the Go-Ahead Group – has come up with an innovative solution: air-filtering passenger buses.
As part of the initiative, the company retrofitted a set of its buses with a new air filtration system attached to the top of the vehicle, meant to clean the air as buses drive around. The system consists of a fan fitted on the roof that draws air into a filter at a pace of one cubic meter per second. The screen then removes ultra-fine particulate pollution from the sky, and clean, pollution-free air exits out the back.
Following a successful trial in Southhampton – one of the UK’s most polluted cities – the bus operator unveiled its plans to expand its air-cleaning fleet to other cities in the country, such as Manchester, Brighton, and Oxford.
The roll-out comes amid growing concern about the rising levels of pollution and demands for local authorities to do to more to clean up the surrounding air. The innovative solution not only cleans air but promotes public transportation use as well! A win-win for the environment.
