Environmental Science Processes & Impacts

PAPER The impact of an anti-idling campaign on outdoor air quality at four urban schools
Patrick H. Ryan,*ab Tiina Reponen,b Mark Simmons,b Michael Yermakov,b Ken Sharkey,c Denisha Garland-Porter,c Cynthia Eghbalniad and Sergey A. Grinshpunb
Idling school buses may increase concentrations of air pollutants including ne particulate matter (PM2.5) and elemental carbon (EC) near schools. Eorts to reduce vehicle idling near schools have rarely included air sampling to objectively assess changes in concentrations of air pollutants. The objective was to determine the impact of an anti-idling campaign on outdoor air quality at four schools with varying exposure to bus and automobile trac. Outdoor air sampling for PM2.5, EC and particle number concentration (PNC) was conducted at four schools for ve days before and after an anti-idling campaign. Sampling began before the morning arrival of buses and concluded after their afternoon departure. Sampling was simultaneously conducted at four corresponding community sites. Dierences in PM2.5, EC, and PNC measured at school and community sites for each sampling day were calculated before and after the campaign. Before the campaign, the average outdoor concentration of PM2.5 during the school day at three of the four schools exceeded community background levels and the dierence was greatest (4.11 mg m3, p < 0.01) at the school with the most buses (n 39). The largest dierence in EC between school and community sites was also observed at the school with the greatest number of buses (0.40 mg m3, p < 0.01). Following the anti-idling campaign, the average dierence in PM2.5 at the school with the most buses decreased from 4.11 mg m3 to 0.99 mg m3 (p < 0.05). Similarly, at this school, the dierence in the EC level decreased from 0.40 mg m3 to 0.15 mg m3 and PNC decreased from 11 560 to 1690 particles per cm3 (p < 0.05). The outdoor concentrations of pollutants at schools with fewer buses (n 511) were not signicantly reduced. The concentration of air pollutants near schools may signicantly exceed community background levels, particularly in the presence of idling school buses. Anti-idling campaigns are eective in reducing PM2.5, EC and PNC at schools with signicant amounts of buses and passenger cars.

Cite this: Environ. Sci.: Processes Impacts, 2013, 15, 2030

Received 16th July 2013 Accepted 3rd September 2013 DOI: 10.1039/c3em00377a rsc.li/process-impacts

Environmental impact
Children spend a signicant amount of their time at schools where exposure to trac-related air pollutants may be elevated due to idling buses. Though eorts have been made to reduce idling near schools, there have been no studies, to our knowledge, which have quantitatively measured changes in air quality before and aer an anti-idling campaign. In this paper, we report that trac-related air pollutants are frequently elevated in the vicinity of schools compared to residential neighborhoods. In addition, we demonstrate that an anti-idling campaign, a simple public health intervention, can signicantly reduce air pollutants at schools with potential benets to the health of children who attend these schools.

1.

Introduction

The areas immediately surrounding major roadways are frequently referred to as trac hot spots locations where levels of trac-related air pollution (TRAP) are elevated.

Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Division of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, 3333 Burnet Ave, ML 5041, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA. E-mail: patrick.ryan@cchmc.org; Fax: +1 513636-7509; Tel: +1 513-803-4704 University of Cincinnati, Department of Environmental Health, Cincinnati, OH, USA Cincinnati Public Schools, Cincinnati, OH, USA Cincinnati Health Department, Cincinnati, OH, USA

b c

Residing in close proximity to these trac sources has been associated with both exacerbation and development of asthma.13 The microenvironment of children, however, includes locations outside of the home, including schools and inside vehicles during transit to and from school. The school environment may be especially relevant to TRAP exposure as a nationwide survey found that 2044% of public schools in nine metropolitan regions were located within 400 m of an interstate or highway where levels of TRAP have been shown to be elevated.4 Few investigations have addressed the health impact of school exposures, though a longitudinal cohort study in southern California has reported both home and school exposure to be associated with the development of new asthma in school-age children.1

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Paper Exposure to TRAP near schools may also be elevated due to the impact of local trac and, in particular, diesel-fueled schools buses. Diesel exhaust particles (DEP), the majority of which are ultrane in size (aerodynamic diameter <0.1 mm), are comprised of an elemental carbon core with a large surface area to which chemicals including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and transition metals may be attached.5 The presence of school buses has been associated with signicantly increased particle number concentration (particularly in the ultrane fraction) in the near-school ambient air.6,7 Studies have also reported that school bus idling can be a signicant predictor of black carbon and PM2.5 concentrations in the school vicinity.8,9 To improve air quality near schools, many communities support anti-idling eorts, retrotting of school buses with diesel oxidation catalysts, and the implementation of alternative fuels including low-sulfur diesel fuel. However, to our knowledge, anti-idling eorts have not been objectively evaluated with accompanying measurements of health-relevant air pollutants. The Cincinnati Anti-Idling Campaign (CAIC), a partnership between academic researchers and community members from local schools and health departments, was designed to determine whether children are exposed to increased levels of TRAP, including ultrane particles and diesel-related elements, while at school and to develop and implement a community-driven anti-idling campaign to reduce exposure to TRAP at schools. The objectives of this analysis were to: (1) compare ambient air monitoring data collected outside of four urban schools to the background levels measured at the corresponding community sites and (2) compare results of preand post-anti-idling measurements performed at four schools participating in the CAIC study in order to quantitatively demonstrate the eectiveness of an anti-idling campaign.

Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts Neighborhood community centers served as community sites for Schools A, B, and D. A private residence was used as the community site for school C. 2.2. School and community air monitoring Pre- and post-anti-idling campaign air monitoring was conducted for each school and their corresponding community sites for ve school days in the spring of 2010 and ve school days in the spring of 2011. For each school, air sampling at the school and community sites was conducted concurrently. Sampling was scheduled for days with forecasted precipitation <6 mm and no unusual activities at the sites. A complete description of the sampling methods is available elsewhere.6 Briey, sampling at both the community and school sites began approximately 30 minutes prior to the rst school bus arriving in the morning and concluded approximately 30 minutes aer the last school bus le in the aernoon. Average pollutant concentrations during this approximately nine-hour sampling period (7 AM to 4 PM) were derived. At each sampling site, two Harvard-type PM2.5 impactors (Air Diagnostics and Engineering, Inc. Harrison, ME) were operated in parallel. The Harvard impactor has a cut size of 2.5 mm at a sampling ow rate of 20 L min1 and particles were collected on two 37 mm lters: one Teon (Pall Corp., Ann Arbor, MI) for PM2.5 mass measurement and elemental analysis by X-ray uorescence and one quartz lter (Whatman, Inc., Clion, NJ) for elemental carbon analysis by thermal-optical transmittance. Two blank samples were collected and analyzed for each sampling location. All analyses were performed by Chester LabNet Inc. (Tigard, OR). A portable condensation nuclei counter (P-Trak, Model 8525, TSI Inc., St. Paul, MN) was also operated at each sampling location to monitor the particle number concentration of aerosol particles during the sampling period. The P-Trak is capable of non-size discriminating real-time counting of particles from 20 nm to >1 mm. The particle number concentration was recorded as a time-series with a resolution of 1 minute. For this analysis, the average particle number concentration (PNC) during the peak morning drop-o period of each school was calculated as the average of the 1 minute particle concentration data from 30 minutes prior to the start of the school day until the start of the school day by which time all children had entered the school. Data obtained from the community-site Ptrak instrument were extracted for the identical time period of each corresponding school and the average PNC concentration was calculated. Results of P-Trak measurements are expressed as particles per cm3. 2.3. Cincinnati anti-idling campaign The objectives, methods, and results of the Cincinnati AntiIdling Campaign (CAIC) have been described in detail elsewhere.10 Briey, the CAIC consisted of four components including research and development, campaign activities, online training videos, and implementation of the EPA Tools for Schools. Key contacts including teachers, administrators, and parents at each participating school were enlisted to assist with the campaign. A school-bus driver educational program was

2.

Methods

2.1. Study sites The study included four public schools, henceforth referred to as Schools A, B, C, and D, selected to participate based upon the prevalence of asthma reported by parents and potential exposure to TRAP emitted from nearby major roads and by school buses. Participating schools were selected from grade schools (pre-Kindergarten through grade 8) whose prevalence of parent reported asthma exceeded 10%. Of these schools, one was chosen to participate from each of the following a priori dened categories: (1) major road <400 m from school, low bus trac (School A), (2) major road >400 m from school, high bus trac (School B), (3) major road <400 m from school, medium bus trac (School C), and (4) major road >400 m, low bus trac (School D). For each of the selected school, an outdoor air monitoring site was established. School sampling stations were generally located at a school entrance nearest to the bus drop o/pick up areas. In addition, the geographic area where children attending each school reside was identied and an outdoor community air monitoring site was established within this catchment area. Site selection criteria for community sites included being greater than 400 m from the nearest major road, having access during the school day and electrical power.

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Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts presented to all bus drivers followed by an anti-idling pledge drive. Information was also provided to parents accompanied with a pledge to reduce idling. Other CAIC activities included school bus monitoring, all school air quality assemblies, and anti-idling signs placed near the school drop-o/pick-up zones. CAIC activities were conducted during the fall and winter 20102011. Following the anti-idling campaign, nearly 400 bus drivers voluntarily pledged to stop idling which was conrmed by a signicant reduction in observed vehicle idling time post-campaign.10 2.4. Statistical analysis The objective of the statistical analyses was to compare concentrations of PM2.5, EC, and particle number concentration (PNC) at schools to their respective community sites and also to assess changes in these pollutant concentrations aer the anti-idling campaign. Sampling data collected in the spring 2010 were considered pre-anti-idling campaign (baseline) and data collected in the spring of 2011 were considered post-antiidling campaign data. Summary statistics of the concentration levels for the air quality measurements were obtained for each schoolyear combination. In order to characterize air quality for each school and year accounting for community/background concentrations, the concentration of each pollutant at the community location was subtracted from the concentration at the school site for each day of sampling (i.e., values >0 indicate that the average concentration at the school site exceeds background levels). Thus, the dierence in concentration levels between the school sites and the community/background location for each site was the primary outcome variable in the statistical analyses. A general linear model was developed for each of the three air quality measurements (PM2.5, EC, PNC) as a function of the two xed eects representing the school site and year, along with an interaction eect: (concentration difference of X)  b0 + b1ischool sitei + b2jyearj + b3ij(school site) (year) + 3ij where X the air quality measure (PM2.5, EC, PNC), b0 s regression coecients, i school site (i 1,.,4), j year (j 1,2), and 3 the residuals. Concentrations of the selected air pollutants were not available perfectly for all days of sampling at all sites due to equipment failure creating an unbalanced study design. Specically, one day of PNC data for School A was not available in 2010. For School C, one day of EC data and two days of PNC data for both 2010 and 2011 were missing. For School D, one day of PNC in 2010 as well as two days of PNC and EC were missing in 2011. There were no missing data points for School B. The statistical analysis was performed using SAS Version 9.2. PROC MIXED was used to model the unequal variances among the dierent schoolyear combinations. The model assumptions of normality, heterogeneity, and linearity were assessed for the tted model. The signicance of each main eect and the interaction eect was determined using an F-test statistic and the overall goodness-of-t for the model was assessed by the log-likelihood ratio statistic and the Akaike Information Criterion (AIC) statistic. Since the study design was unbalanced,

Paper the least-squares (LS) means were computed for each school year combination and a t-test was performed to test the null hypothesis that each specic schoolyear LS-mean equals zero. This hypothesis test of the concentration dierence was equivalent to testing whether or not the concentration levels at the school bus drop-o location were dierent from the community levels. A test of simple eects was performed using an F-test statistic to test the eect of year for each level of school, and vice versa.

3.

Results

The characteristics of the participating schools are presented in Table 1. Schools A and C were located less than 400 m from a major road. However, School A was near a federal interstate highway with approximately 7 times the number of daily passenger vehicle trac (130 198 vs. 17 080) and nearly 60 times the number of daily trucks (17 305 vs. 290) than School C. The number of buses at each school ranged from 5 (School A) to 39 (School B). School B also had the highest average number of cars during drop-o (n 77) during the weeks of air sampling. 3.1. PM2.5 results The average PM2.5 concentrations at school and community sites before and aer the anti-idling campaign are presented in Fig. 1. The concentration of PM2.5 at community sites ranged from 12.2 to 17.6 mg m3 and PM2.5 concentrations at schools sites were similar (13.117.9 mg m3) (Fig. 1A). The highest overall average PM2.5 concentration was observed at School B, which was not located near major roads but had, on average, 39 buses per day. Following the anti-idling campaign, the concentration of PM2.5 at school sites ranged from 9.0 to 20.5 mg m3 while background concentrations ranged from 9.8 to 21.0 mg m3 (Fig. 1B). The average dierences of PM2.5 concentrations between school and community sites before and aer the anti-idling campaign are presented in Table 2. Prior to the campaign, the concentrations of PM2.5 at schools exceeded those at the background site at three of the four schools, and was signicantly greater than the background concentration at School B (average dierence D 4.11 mg m3, p < 0.01). Following the anti-idling campaign, the average level of PM2.5 at School B was the only location exceeding the background site (D 0.99 mg m3, p < 0.01). The change in average school-background dierences due to the anti-idling campaign was signicant for Schools B (4.11 to 0.99 mg m3) and D (0.48 to 1.35 mg m3). In the case of School D, average community concentrations of PM2.5 exceeded school concentrations aer the anti-idling campaign. This signicant change may be a result of reduced idling at the school resulting in community levels exceeding school concentrations or changes in background concentrations of PM2.5 in the community. 3.2. EC results Fig. 2 presents the average concentrations of EC before and aer the anti-idling campaign at school and community sites. The concentration of EC at the four schools prior to the anti-idling campaign ranged from 0.06 at School C to 0.77 mg m3 at School
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Paper
Table 1 Characteristics of participating schoolsa

Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts

School Characteristic Year built Distance to the nearest major road* (m) Average daily passenger vehicle count on the nearest major road Average daily truck count on the nearest major road Average number of buses per arrival/departure Average number of cars/ drop-o Prevalence of parental reported asthma Description of school/ community A 2007 303 130 198 B 2007 526 8310 C 1962 243 17 080 D 2005 2083 136 530

17 305 5 18 10% Urban school/community located near a major interstate highway and other industrial and transportation sources

210 39 77 10% Urban school/ community with no nearby transportation or industrial sources

290 11 27 15% Urban/suburban school/ community with moderate nearby trac sources

19 710 9 24 12% Urban school community with nearby major industrial sources

Major road dened as U.S. interstate, U.S. highway, or state highway.

B. Corresponding community site levels ranged from 0.05 to 0.62 mg m3 and were lower than those at school sites with the exception of School A (Fig. 2). Following the anti-idling campaign, the concentration of EC at both school and community sites increased for Schools A and C while decreased EC concentrations were observed at Schools B and D. Prior to the anti-idling campaign, concentrations of EC at School B were signicantly greater than the corresponding community levels (D 0.40 mg m3, p < 0.05). There were no other signicant dierences observed for EC between school and community sites prior to the campaign. Following the campaign, the concentration of EC at School B was no longer signicantly elevated compared to background levels (Table 2).

In addition, the change in average dierence between school and community levels at school B was signicantly reduced (0.40 to 0.15 mg m3, p 0.05). However, at School A, the average dierence between school and community levels increased (0.18 to 0.22 mg m3, p 0.01).

3.3. Particle number concentration results Both before and aer the anti-idling campaign, the average PNC at community sites exceeded that at school sites with the exception of the school with the greatest number of buses (School B, Fig. 3). Prior to the anti-idling campaign, the lowest PNCs at both school and community sites were observed at

Fig. 1

Pre- and post-anti-idling campaign average PM2.5 (+1 SE) at school and community sites.

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Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts

Table 2

Paper

Average dierence (D)* in PM2.5, elemental carbon (EC), and particle number concentration (PNC) between school and community sampling sitesa

School A Preanti-idling DPM2.5 (mg m3) DEC (mg m3) DPNC (particles per c3) 0.95 0.18 15 500** Postanti-idling 0.52 0.22** 3630 B Preanti-idling 4.11** 0.40** 11 560** Postanti-idling 0.99** 0.15 1690 C Preanti-idling 0.9 0.01 440 Postanti-idling 4.71 0.04 920 D Preanti-idling 0.48 0.16 7250** Postanti-idling 1.35 0.01 4130**

p 0.77 0.01 0.02

p 0.04 0.05 0.01

p 0.33 0.55 0.59

p 0.03 0.27 0.01

a *Community site concentration subtracted from school concentration. D > 0 indicates that the average concentrations at the school site exceeded community levels. D < 0 indicates that community levels exceeded those at school sites. **Dierence in school and community concentrations (p < 0.05) signicantly diers from 0.

Fig. 2

Pre- and post-anti-idling campaign average elemental carbon concentrations (+1 SE) at school and community sites.

School C (10 480 and 10 920 particles per cm3) while the largest observed PNCs occurred at School A sites (Fig. 3). As seen in Fig. 3, PNC sampled aer the anti-idling campaign was

generally lower than before the campaign at both community and school sites. The dierences in average PNC between school and community sites before and aer the anti-idling

Fig. 3

Pre- and post-anti-idling campaign average particle number concentration (+1 SE) at school and community sites.

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Paper campaign are presented in Table 2. Before the anti-idling campaign, the average PNC at school sites was signicantly less than that at community sites for Schools A and C (D 15 500 and D 7.250 particles per cm3) while at one location (School B) the PNC at the school site signicantly exceeded background PNC levels (D 11560 particles per cm3, p < 0.01) (Table 2). Following the anti-idling campaign, only School D continued to have a signicant dierence in PNC between community and school sites (D 4130 p cm3). In addition, the dierence in school and community PNC dierences was signicantly reduced at Schools A, B, and D (Table 2).

Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts produce particles primarily in the ultrane size range and these have been associated with respiratory and neurologic health eects due to their deposition in the lower respiratory tract and potential to impact the brain.12,13 The small size and large surface area of diesel exhaust particles allow for numerous compounds to be attached to the elemental carbon core including low-molecular weight hydrocarbons such as aldehydes, benzene, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and nitro-PAHs. Diesel exhaust is also comprised of sulfate, nitrate, metals, and other trace elements which have been linked to health outcomes.14 In the US, approximately 24 million students are transported to school on nearly 600 000 school buses, the majority of which are diesel fueled.15 Compared to emissions following engine restart, idling school buses have been found to contribute to signicantly increased concentrations of ne PM, BC, EC, and ultrane particle number concentration.4,7,8,1618 Short term exposure to DEP and UFP, as may occur during school bus idling, has been shown to elicit acute decreases in lung function and increases in neutrophilic inammation among asthmatics in a roadside environmental experiment.19 A frequent limitation of many epidemiologic studies of air pollution and health outcomes is the use of only home addresses to characterize exposure. Children, in particular, spend most of their time outside their home and exposures at schools or in transportation to school are likely to account for a signicant proportion of a child's overall exposure to TRAP.20 Despite this, there have been few studies which have examined or accounted for school exposures and associated health outcomes. In a French cross-sectional study, indoor air pollutants, including formaldehyde and PM2.5, were found to be signicantly associated with rhinoconjunctivitis and asthma symptoms in the previous year.21 In the Southern California Children's Health Study, the risk for developing new onset asthma was found to be associated with exposure to TRAP at both homes and schools.1 Components of the TRAP mixture, including EC, ultrane particles (particles <100 nm in diameter), NOx, and other pollutants, exhibit high spatial variability with elevated concentrations within approximately 400 m or less from major roads.11,22,23 It has been recognized that schools located in the vicinity of nearby roads may have elevated levels of these pollutants outside and studies in both the U.S. and Canada have found a signicant number of schools located near major roads.4,24 The impact of nearby roads on both schools and communities is evident for School A, which is located near a major interstate highway, and had the highest levels of PM2.5 and EC during the post-anti-idling campaign sampling period. There are, however, several limitations to this study. Schools selected to participate in the anti-idling campaign were chosen based upon the prevalence of asthma among students, the number of school buses, and nearby sources of TRAP. Cincinnati Public Schools, however, are primarily neighborhood schools with many students living in close proximity. Thus, the average number of buses serving K-8 schools in CPS is 9 and in our study the number of buses ranged from 539. The impact of the anti-idling campaign on air quality was particularly evident at School B which had 39 buses. Therefore, we speculate that

4.

Discussion

To our knowledge, this is the rst study to assess the eectiveness of an anti-idling campaign by pre- and post-campaign air monitoring for PM2.5, EC, and PNC. The results of this study support the assumption that anti-idling eorts are successful in reducing trac-related particle exposure. In particular, we observed signicant reductions in PM2.5, EC, and PNC at School B, which had the largest number of school buses (n 39) in the school vicinity. Changes in idling behavior at schools with fewer buses (511) were not reected by changes in measured air pollutants. This research eort was undertaken as part of an academiccommunity partnership with the objectives of determining whether children are exposed to increased levels of TRAP at schools compared to their communities, to develop and implement a community-driven anti-idling campaign, and to evaluate the eectiveness of the intervention to reduce TRAP at schools with the goal of improving the health of children who attend the schools10 The concurrent sampling of community and school outdoor concentrations of PM2.5, EC, and PNC allowed examining the changes in air quality at the schools relative to changes in community air quality. In a study of PM2.5 and black carbon (BC, surrogate for EC) near four schools in New York City, variability in background concentrations was assessed using sites throughout the city and found to contribute approximately 80% of the variability in air pollutants at the schools.8 This study also found local trac and diesel idling to be signicant contributors to outdoor concentrations of these pollutants measured at school.8 In our study, we attempted to identify community sites within the catchment area for each school in order to obtain representative ambient air measurements for the neighborhoods in which children resided. Using this approach, we found that in 3 of the 4 schools, community levels of PM2.5 were not signicantly dierent from those at school sites. These ndings are not unexpected given the large spatial variation of PM2.5 (ref. 11) which exceeds the distance from school to community sites. Nevertheless, our nding of PM2.5 concentrations at School B exceeding community levels suggests that local bus and car trac at the school (which was not located near major roads) are signicant contributors to PM2.5 at that site. Despite eorts to reduce idling near schools, there have been few studies which measured the inuence of idling school buses on air quality. Idling diesel school buses and trucks

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Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts anti-idling campaigns are likely to have the greatest impact on air pollutant concentrations in school districts with a greater number of buses. Another limitation to this study is the number of available air measurements (5 pre- campaign, 5 postcampaign) which does not provide information on long-term trends of air quality near the participating schools. Meteorological conditions are also important factors which inuence the dispersion of emissions and their impact. In particular, wind direction may play an important role in the impact of nearby trac sources on sampled pollutant concentrations. However, our primary outcome (dierences in pollutant concentrations between school and community sites) is less likely to be impacted by meteorological conditions as these are not expected to signicantly vary from each school to its corresponding community site on each day of sampling. Nevertheless, we acknowledge that local, short-term wind patterns may play a role in the sampled concentrations. A particular strength of our analysis is the use of a mixed linear model which allows for the dierence in daily school-community site concentrations to be examined rather than average concentrations for the sampling period (over which meteorological conditions are more likely to vary). This approach also increases the power of the analysis to detect signicant dierences. In conclusion, we have shown that the outdoor concentrations of PM2.5, EC, and PNC are signicantly elevated compared to background levels at a school with a large number of school buses. In addition we have quantitatively demonstrated a reduction in PM2.5, EC, and PNC aer an anti-idling campaign. Despite a nationwide anti-idling campaign initiated by the U.S. EPA (National Idle-Reduction Campaign, NIRC) as a part of its Clean School Bus USA program, the School Health Policies and Programs Study (SHPPS) has recently reported that 56.6% of surveyed school districts had not implemented any school bus idling reduction program.25 Implementation and enforcement of anti-idling statutes near schools should be considered as part of a multi-faceted approach to improve air quality at schools where children spend large amounts of their time and may be exposed to freshly emitted diesel exhaust when entering, exiting, or playing near idling school buses.

Paper 3 Health Eects Institute, Trac-related air pollution a critical review of the literature on emissions, exposure, and health eects; HEI panel on the health eects of trac-related air pollution, in Health Eects Institute Special report no 17, Health Eects Institute, Boston, MA, 2010, vol. 1, various pagings. 4 A. S. Appatova, P. H. Ryan, G. K. LeMasters and S. A. Grinshpun, Proximal exposure of public schools and students to major roadways: a nationwide US survey, J. Environ. Plann. Manage., 2008, 51, 631646. 5 M. Riedl and D. Diaz-Sanchez, Biology of diesel exhaust eects on respiratory function, J. Allergy Clin. Immunol., 2005, 115, 221228; quiz 9. 6 H. A. Hochstetler, M. Yermakov, T. Reponen, P. H. Ryan and S. A. Grinshpun, Aerosol particles generated by dieselpowered school buses at urban schools as a source of children's exposure, Atmos. Environ., 2011, 45, 14441453. 7 C. Li, Q. Nguyen, P. H. Ryan, et al. School bus pollution and changes in the air quality at schools: a case study, J. Environ. Monit., 2009, 11, 10371042. 8 J. Richmond-Bryant, C. Saganich, L. Bukiewicz and R. Kalin, Associations of PM2.5 and black carbon concentrations with trac, idling, background pollution, and meteorology during school dismissals, Sci. Total Environ., 2009, 407, 33573364. 9 J. Richmond-Bryant, L. Bukiewicz, R. Kalin, C. Galarraga and F. Mirer, A multi-site analysis of the association between black carbon concentrations and vehicular idling, trac, background pollution, and meteorology during school dismissals, Sci. Total Environ., 2011, 409, 20852093. 10 C. Eghbalnia, K. Sharkey, D. Garland-Porter, M. Alam, M. Crumpton, C. Jones and P. H. Ryan, A communitybased participatory research partnership to reduce vehicle idling near public schools, J. Environ. Health, 2013, 75(9), 1420. 11 A. A. Karner, D. S. Eisinger and D. A. Niemeier, Near-roadway air quality: synthesizing the ndings from real-world data, Environ. Sci. Technol., 2010, 44, 53345344. 12 G. Oberdorster, Z. Sharp, V. Atudorei, et al. Translocation of inhaled ultrane particles to the brain, Inhalation Toxicol., 2004, 16, 437445. ~ as, et al. Air pollution, cognitive 13 L. Calder on-Garciduen decits and brain abnormalities: a pilot study with children and dogs, Brain Cognit., 2008, 68, 117127. 14 H. E. Wichmann, Diesel exhaust particles, Inhalation Toxicol., 2007, 19(suppl. 1), 241244. 15 J. Wargo, D. Brown, M. Cullen, K. Hood, M. Trahiotis and J. Yellen, Children's exposure to diesel exhaust on school buses, Children, 2006, 1, 41. 16 L. D. Sabin, E. Behrentz, A. M. Winer, et al. Characterizing the range of children's air pollutant exposure during school bus commutes, J. Exposure Anal. Environ. Epidemiol., 2005, 15, 377387. 17 J. S. Kinsey, D. C. Williams, Y. Dong and R. Logan, Characterization of ne particle and gaseous emissions during school bus idling, Environ. Sci. Technol., 2007, 41, 49724979.
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Acknowledgements
The researchers would like to thank the participating Cincinnati Public Schools. This research was funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, grant number R21ES017957.

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