Abstract

Air pollution is causing a serious threat to public health in most of the urban centers in the developing countries. Dhaka is one of the most polluted cities in the world. The environment of Dhaka has been deteriorating rapidly during the last couple of years. The road users frequently complain about headache, eye and skin irritation and breathing problems. The situation is expected to be worsening further with the increase of population, economic development and high influx of people from rural areas. Motor vehicle, which is increasing at a rate of about 5 percent per year in Dhaka, is the most significant source of air pollution. In this article, we have analyzed the vehicle population structure and trends in Dhaka from 1990 to 2000. The paper also investigates the role of different types of motor vehicles in the trends of air pollution of Dhaka city.

The analysis results of motor vehicle structure show that in 1992 the highest proportion (45%) was occupied by 2-wheeler, the second highest proportion (22%) belonged to car and taxi, and 3-wheeler vehicle was 12%. In 2000 those were 38%, 26% and 16%, respectively. The results show that the total NOx emission in 2000 was 31,903 tons. Among them 3-wheeler vehicles, diesel trucks and cars and taxis contributed 44, 33 and 11%, respectively. The total SOx emission was 19,386 tons. The main contributor, diesel trucks, emitted 58% and the next highest contributor, car and taxi, contributed 17%. The study also recommends several strategies for vehicular emission control with the aim to improve existing air quality of the Dhaka City.