Determination method and characteristics of urban road dust in typical coastal cities

This study investigated road dust accumulation in two coastal Chinese cities, Ningbo and Yantai. Using a rapid detection system for road dust accumulation based on the TRAKER method, we conducted dust accumulation load monitoring from September 2022 to October 2023, and analyzed the spatiotemporal distribution characteristics. The results showed that: (1) The rapid detection system for road dust accumulation based on the TRAKER method operated stably. The average road dust accumulation load in Ningbo City was 0.44 g/m², while that in Yantai City was 0.57 g/m². The order of road dust accumulation load in different seasons in Ningbo City was winter (0.70 g/m²) > autumn (0.38 g/m²) > spring (0.34 g/m²) > summer (0.29 g/m²), while in Yantai City, it was winter (1.10 g/m²) > spring (0.57 g/m²) > autumn (0.45 g/m²) > summer (0.41 g/m²). (2) In most areas of Ningbo City, the proportion of roads meeting the excellent or good standards for dust accumulation load was over 60%. In Yantai City, on most streets, the proportion of roads with excellent or good dust accumulation load was about 50%. (3) The dust accumulation load on secondary roads and branch roads in both cities was greater than that on main roads and expressways, indicating that roads with lower vehicle speeds accumulate dust more quickly and have higher dust load.