Nearly 40 million people in the UK live in areas with illegal levels of diesel pollution, yet no navigation tool shows them where the NO₂ and CO₂ actually are. This project builds a system called REVIS that uses roadside IoT sensors to measure real-time emissions and display them on a travel app, a data platform for services like Google Maps, and a monitoring dashboard for local authorities. Current methods for predicting pollution rely on counting cars and estimating per-vehicle emissions—an approach the VW scandal proved unreliable. REVIS replaces guesswork with live sensor data, giving drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians the ability to choose less polluted routes. For local authorities, the system offers a way to test which policies actually cut emissions in their communities. If successful, REVIS could quietly reshape how navigation systems work, adding air quality as a standard layer alongside traffic and travel time. It might also help cities target pollution hotspots more precisely, potentially reducing the estimated 40,000 annual UK deaths linked to NO₂ and the £20 billion yearly economic cost from related illnesses.
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"Current methods that predict pollutant emissions by estimating the number of cars on roads are highly inaccurate. This is because the real-world emissions per vehicle cannot be trusted, as the recent VW scandal has demonstrated. Nearly 40 million people in the UK are living in areas where illegal levels of air pollution from diesel vehicles risk damaging their health (ClientEarth 2017). According to the Royal College of Physicians (RCP), there are 40,000 deaths every year due to NO2, which has been linked to cancer, asthma, stroke, heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and dementia; resulting in high cost to people who suffer from these illnesses and costing the economy £20 billion yearly (RCP 2017). The population is worried about the issue as, in 2017, 4000 people has used air-pollution monitoring kits in the UK (Friends-of-Earth). Despite the health threats accruable from emissions, no tool exists that visualises NO2 & CO2 emissions in real-time. Existing travel navigation assistants (e.g. Google Maps, Apple iOS Maps, Waze, automakers navigation systems, Tomtom, AA route-planner, etc.) do not provide information about NO2 & CO2 levels. This project will develop a system for Real-Time Emissions Visualisation (REVIS) for eco-friendly travel behaviour. REVIS will use IoT-sensors to obtain the actual amount of NO2 & CO2 emissions on roads and highways and visualise them in real-time. The REVIS system will consists of: (1) REVIS Travel Planner (RTP). This app will visualise in real-time NO2 & CO2 emissions on roads providing drivers, commuters, cyclists and pedestrians with accurate emissions levels along their planned journey. (2) Emission Visualisation as-a-Service (EVaaS) is a platform that provides emissions data to navigation and travel planner providers (e.g. Google Maps, Apple iOS Map; Waze, Tomtom, AA route-planner, etc.) so that they can include it on their solutions. (3) REVIS Cities Emissions Map and Monitor (RCEMM) will support local and highway authorities to monitor in real-time actual NO2 & CO2 levels. REVIS aims to provide a step-change in decision-making and behavioural change for emissions reduction. REVIS will enable local authorities to devise and test emission reduction policies tailored to their communities."
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