“The locomotive stands on the station”, that is environmental pollution connected with railway transport
Bogusław Wiłkomirski
The increasing number of people, as well as the extending civilizing and technological requirements constrain the progress of different types of transportation, which inevitably lead to contamination of the areas located in the vicinity of transportation routes. As a result of these events the increase of xenobiotics in the environment is observed. The road and railway transportations are the main types of land carriage. The harmfulness of road transportation was described in details both in original and review papers. The scientific literature concerning the contamination caused by the railway is poorer and some aspects connected with this problem need further investigations. In the present study the influence of railway transportation on the increase of organic and inorganic contamination of the areas surrounding the railway lines and infrastructure was presented. The polyaromatichydrocarbons (PAHs) and heavy metals are especially taken into consideration, because they are the most important pollutants emitted by this type of transportation.
