The best advise for reducing your exposure to air pollution on the bike is to choose routes away from heavy traffic, especially slow moving heavy traffic. Pollution concentrations drop off very quickly as you get further away from roads, so a quiet back street or cycle route in a park is of genuine benefit, even in central London. (Obviously this advise only works IF there is a good route away from heavy traffic, which isn't often the case)
Pollution drops off so quickly from the roadside that standing back from the kerb when you are waiting for a bus is also a good idea, even a couple of meters.
If you can choose the time of day when you ride that can help too. Avoid late morning when pollution often spikes due to the rush hour, in winter the late morning pollution concentrations are often even higher because a layer of cold air at the land surface traps the pollution and stops it dispersing.
Late afternoon can also be bad as the evening rush hour adds to the whole day's emissions. This is worse in summer if there is high air pressure (low wind stops pollution dispersing, sunlight causes build up of ozone pollution in some conditions).
The best advise for reducing your exposure to air pollution on the bike is to choose routes away from heavy traffic, especially slow moving heavy traffic. Pollution concentrations drop off very quickly as you get further away from roads, so a quiet back street or cycle route in a park is of genuine benefit, even in central London. (Obviously this advise only works IF there is a good route away from heavy traffic, which isn't often the case)
Pollution drops off so quickly from the roadside that standing back from the kerb when you are waiting for a bus is also a good idea, even a couple of meters.
If you can choose the time of day when you ride that can help too. Avoid late morning when pollution often spikes due to the rush hour, in winter the late morning pollution concentrations are often even higher because a layer of cold air at the land surface traps the pollution and stops it dispersing.
Late afternoon can also be bad as the evening rush hour adds to the whole day's emissions. This is worse in summer if there is high air pressure (low wind stops pollution dispersing, sunlight causes build up of ozone pollution in some conditions).