REPORTING. Toulouse: at the edge of the ring road, the slow asphyxiation of the inhabitants
The repeated traffic jams on the Toulouse ring road create peaks in atmospheric pollution. A few meters away, residents undergo it without being aware of it.
About ten meters and a tagged wall. This is what separates the inhabitants of the popular building at 15 route de Bayonne, in the Purpan district, from the Toulouse ring road. This private condominium with blue balconies 300 meters long is well known to Toulouse residents. Close to the intriguing ring road. In the heart of road traffic, which is the biggest cause of air pollution, how do the inhabitants live? Every day, they breathe polluted air, without worrying too much about the consequences on their health. For lack of knowledge.
Here, the noise is more disturbing. “Hear the cars pass or honk, it’s unbearable. In addition, the planes fly above our heads ”, testify many inhabitants. In a room, Ilhame, 34, admits that she “feels the difference between the air of the countryside and that which one breathes at the bottom of the building”.
“I would go for a test to find out the state of my lungs”
In this polluted environment, children have the first victims. In a report published this Thursday, October 14, the Climate Action Network and UNICEF France warn about the consequences of air pollution on children in poverty. “More than three out of four French children breathe polluted air”, remind the organizations.
Inhabitants of the asphalt where the nearby land is peeled, the kids suffer from the lack of vegetation.
For older children, polluted air is not harmless. But the concern is quiet. “We know that living here is not healthy. One day I would go for tests to find out the state of my lungs, ”says Lhou, a resident of 15 route de Bayonne. The windows of the apartments are closed. Often because of the noise. And also a little intriguing air.