Largest study explores impact of dust on Tube staff

Researchers have carried out the largest study to date on the potential health impacts from airborne dust on the London Underground. The research, led by Imperial College London, found that staff who worked in areas with higher levels of fine dust - called particulate matter (PM_2.5) - also tended to report more episodes of sickness absence. However, the researchers stress that the findings do not provide enough evidence to establish that exposure to PM_2.5 directly leads to sickness absence, and that more research is needed to confirm these potential links. There was some evidence to suggest that staff exposed to higher levels of PM2.5 took more days off sick, but this link wasn't clear cut. Dr David Green School of Public Health - It is also common in similar places of work for office-based staff to have lower absence than operational staff (e.g. engineering or maintenance staff). The study, published in the journal Environment International , is the largest and most comprehensive of its kind ever conducted to link air quality and health effects in a subway system, and could have implications for subway networks around the world.