Despite improved air quality, many cities in Germany are still threatened with diesel driving bans. It is also feared that the WHO's lowering of the limit value for ultrafine particulate matter will mean that even more cities will have to introduce driving bans.
It is not only in Europe that it has been recognised that restrictions on traffic are necessary to reduce pollutant emissions. All over the world, new rules and restrictions are being introduced to help reduce the share of deadly pollutant emissions and, above all, to better protect the population in cities.
Since 1 January 2021, a night-time ban on diesel trucks has been in force in the Austrian province of Tyrol. An expert report by the University of Innsbruck has now made it clear that this is in contradiction to EU rules.
The Indonesian capital Jakarta wants to go new ways to fight noise and air pollution: Half of the scooters, mopeds and motorbikes are banned from driving.
A good two years ago, a study by the Dutch government concluded that LPG offers few advantages compared to diesel. Back then, the European environmental organisation Transport & Environment (T&E) was already calling for a rethink. Now a second study has come out.
Everyone should drive electric cars. But when it comes to mastering everyday life, electric cars still often reach their limits. This is largely due to the infrastructure, which is still in its infancy in many places. Parking garages with charging functions promise a solution. But what happens if a car catches fire there?
Norway has two environmental zones. From 2025 onwards, the country does not want to allow any new combustion cars. This may not even be necessary, because no internal combustion cars are expected to be added as early as around 2022, if sales of electric cars continue as they have been.
Germany is on the right track. One might think. Because the country has managed to comply with the limit values for particulate matter and nitrogen oxide almost everywhere. But new WHO limits could mean that driving bans for petrol and diesel vehicles and new environmental zones will be introduced in hundreds of cities and regions.
Air pollution has a negative impact on health worldwide. It is estimated that a total of up to 4.2 million people die prematurely due to pollution in cities. In Europe, too, the limit values are exceeded by many countries.
Motorcyclists have a hard time: more and more cities don't want to let old combustion engines in. Added to this is the noise with which male and female riders make themselves unpopular in many places. A survey among drivers suggests that there will be fewer and fewer motorbikes in the future.
