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Autore: by the Integrated Program of Mexico City

Collana: AA - 2004 Mexico City - Reducing The Impact of Vehicles on Air and Environment Quality in Cities

Note:
The Mexico City metropolitan area (MCMA) is one of the largest megacities in the world with nearly 20 million inhabitants, covering 1500 urban square kilometers, and including nearly 3.5 million vehicles. The city is surrounded by mountains, making air dispersion difficult. It is at a high altitude and low latitude, conditions permitting high solar radiation intensity that leads to the rapid formation of ozone and secondary particulate matter. This combination of features produces one of the worst air pollution problems in the world.
The problem of Mexico City air pollution has been well recognized by both the government and the citizens since the 1970s. Policy initiatives enacted in the 1990s have been effective in addressing some aspects of the problem. There have been substantial reductions in ambient levels of lead, sulfur dioxide, and carbon monoxide, but concentrations of ozone and particulate matter show a more limited improvement over the past decades. Substantial challenges remain to effectively reduce concentrations of these pollutants while improving the standards of living for Mexico City’s growing population.