Roadway air dispersion modeling is the study of
air pollutant transport from a roadway or other linear emitter.
Computer models are required to conduct this analysis, because of the complex variables involved, including vehicle
emissions, vehicle speed,
meteorology, and
terrain geometry.
Line source dispersion has been studied since at least the 1960s, when the regulatory framework in the
United States began requiring quantitative analysis of the air pollution consequences of major roadway and airport projects. By the early 1970s this subset of
atmospheric dispersion models were being applied to real world cases of highway planning, even including some controversial court cases.