The smell of diesel exhaust still makes me think of London, Paris... etc. Somehow that imprinted on me. They're actually good memories, but just an unusual spell to associate them with.
Now, Whenever we go to the city, I notice how much it stinks.
It's so weird because I never noticed that before. My nose for used to "clean" hair now. And I don't even live away from the road.
I'd like to move even more into the woods.
But hey, people want cars. Lots of dirty but cheap cars. Almost nobody seems to care. It's just the nature of living in a poor country I guess.
I think cars generally contribute to bad smells, and poor waste management infrastructure can also contribute to bad smells (think garbage bins out on streets instead of enclosed, for example)
Stockholm has tolls to reduce road congestion though. The place was definitely smellier back in the 90's.
I feel this quite strongly since I get around by motorcycle, so I don't have the benefit of filters and whatnot that cars have.
Whenever I do this, I keep wondering what the lungs of people commuting every day look like, since I get a dry cough even when traffic isn't all that dense.
Are there no helmets with integrated filters? Perhaps something like the Stormtrooper’s helmets? If not, wonder if someone should come up with those..
Milan, albeit much smaller, is times worse than Rome.
Paris and London are another example of big offenders, while Barcelona is not.