<
https://thedriven.io/2026/02/23/ice-trucks-and-buses-cost-society-billions-in-premature-deaths-chronic-illness/>
"Pollution from heavy vehicles is costing Australia more than $6.2 billion a
year in premature deaths and serious medical conditions such as childhood
asthma and strokes.
Researchers from the University of Melbourne issued the warning on Monday in an
analysis of dangerous emissions from trucks and buses on Australian roads.
They say the issue could be addressed with transport reforms, including changes
to heavy vehicle inspections and low-emission corridors to protect communities.
The finding comes months before changes to Australia’s Heavy Vehicle National
Law are expected to be introduced that could affect vehicle weights and the
quality of fuel used in them.
The discussion paper, called
The Unpriced Burden, analysed the impact of
long-term exposure to nitrogen dioxide emitted from trucks and buses that weigh
more than 4.5 tonnes.
It found the heavy vehicles contributed about one quarter of the nation’s
transport emissions and could raise the risk of several health conditions, with
children among the most in danger.
Four medical issues that had a strong link with air pollution were included in
the report’s financial estimate, with adult cardiovascular hospital admissions
making the biggest impact, followed by adult respiratory admissions and
childhood asthma onset.
Premature deaths caused by air pollution made up the greatest share of air
pollution’s cost at $5.8 billion of the total, with the study estimating it
caused the lost of more than 23,800 years of life."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
