Study the effectiveness of different actions and policies in improving urban air quality: Dammam City as a case study

Traffic-related air pollution abatement will remain a challenge because of increasing demand for transportation. This study was aiming to assess the effectiveness of different actions and policies in improving urban air quality. Levels of five air pollutants were simultaneously measured at three locations with different human activities for continuous six years starting from 2010 to 2015 at Dammam City in Saudi Arabia. Data of road traffic policies and administrative actions was obtained from several governmental authorities. Levels of the five pollutants were gradually reduced from year to year with different percents and trends. As for PM10 and VOCs, levels of the industrial and commercial areas were still higher than their recommended air quality guidelines (AQGs) (150 mu g/m3 and 0.24 ppm respectively). The traffic management policies and administrative actions appear to be effective to produce significant decreases in traffic-related air pollution concentrations and improve the air quality of urban areas.