Stopping and smelling the roses is
now a matter of simply waiting at a bus stop, thanks to an idea which
sees gardens planted on top of public transport vehicles.
A prototype range of the adapted buses are aiming to purify air in cities that have a lack of urban green areas.
Landscape
artist Marc Granen's system, dubbed PhytoKinetic, uses condensation
from the vehicle's air conditioning system to water the roof. The garden
can also be manually watered.
His first bus is currently being used to transport tourists to and from a nature and camping facility in Girona, Spain.
Last week he completed the first van in the world with a PhytoKinetic roof.
Mr Granen said:
'Urban green areas are crucial for photosynthesis, a process in which
plants absorb CO2 and release O2 - vital for purifying the air we
breathe.
The lungs of a city must grow at the same rate as its population, but much-needed green areas are not always available.
'Phytokinetic has grown out of this supposition, with the goal of delivering a practical and tangible solution.
'If
finding new urban spaces for gardens is problematic, we can use spaces
that already exist, such as the roofs of city public transport.
'Our
mission is to expand the garden area in urban areas, increase the
absorption of CO2 and give public transport a new ecological and tourist
attraction.'
The system
uses lightweight 7cm-thick hydroponic foam, which retains humidity but
not water, and helps to reduce the weight in periods of continuous rain.
Small shrubs can then planted to suit the climate of the host city or to match a particular bus lines own identifying garden.
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