The objective of this work was to determine the effect of
one form of traffic calming on emissions. Traffic calming
is aimed at reducing average vehicle speeds, especially
in residential neighborhoods, often using physical road
obstructions such as speed bumps, but it also results in
a higher number of acceleration/deceleration events
which in turn yield higher emissions. Testing was
undertaken by driving a warmed-up Euro-1 spark ignition
passenger car over a set of speed bumps on a level
road, and then comparing the emissions output to a noncalmed
level road negotiated smoothly at a similar
average speed. For the emissions measurements, a
novel method was utilized, whereby the vehicle was
fitted with a portable Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR)
spectrometer, capable of measuring up to 51 different
components in real-time on the road. The results
showed that increases in emissions were much greater
than was previously reported by other researchers using
different techniques. When traffic-calmed results were
compared to a smooth non-calmed road, there were
substantial increases in CO2 (90%), CO (117%), NOx
(195%) and THC (148%). These results form the basis
for a good argument against traffic calming using speed
bumps, especially for aggressive drivers. Slowing traffic
down with speed restrictions enforced by speed
cameras is a more environmentally friendly option