Traffic in the City of Skopje and its impact on air pollution

Abstract

Today the world is living in a dynamic process of industrialization and urbanization and
when we add the strong pressure of the increase of human population to these
processes, we can realistically speak of distorted conditions in the sustainable
development, accompanied by the extremely strong impact on climate changes.
This pressure is most noticeable in large cities, which at the same time represent major
industrial, economic and social centers. Skopje, as the capital city of Macedonia, belongs
to the group of cities characterized by these processes.
Traffic is the main artery for communicating and organizing life in the city. Car transport
and public bus transport are the main carriers of traffic, complemented with the
participation of truck transport in the fields of construction, transport of goods, customs
warehouses, etc.
All of this contributes towards traffic having a strong environmental impact, especially
on air quality, and Skopje is regularly among the most polluted cities in the world. The
number of cars involved in traffic, their year of production and the type of engine they
use, fuel quality and road infrastructure only complete the picture of the real impact of
traffic on the quality of life, and especially on air pollution.
This situation also affects the social, health and economic conditions in the city.