Following the announcement of tighter environmental zone regulations from next autumn for all diesel vehicles, Denmark is unveiling its plans to say goodbye to internal combustion engines. The possibility of a ban on combustion engines from 2030, including the state of the infrastructure and the social compatibility of the measure, is currently being examined in detail. Will Copenhagen's low-emission zone become a zero-emission zone?
As of next October, passenger cars with diesel engines will also have to comply with the regulations of the Danish environmental zones in Copenhagen, Aalborg, Aarhus and Odense. From then on, not only diesel buses, vans and trucks, but also diesel cars of emission class Euro 5 or Euro 4 with particulate filters - which were registered before January 2011 - will require registration in order to stay legally in a Danish low emission zone. Older vehicles are generally banned. But this is not all. The Danish government is already planning to say goodbye to the combustion engine.
In less than 10 years, Copenhagen wants to completely ban vehicles with combustion engines and thus free itself from a large part of the climate-damaging traffic emissions. Diesel cars ultimately lead to excessive pollutant levels in the air - and, according to a recent study by the Technical University of Munich, are responsible for the majority of the externalised costs of road traffic. This is precisely why the city, with the support of the entire city council, is now planning not to allow any vehicles with combustion engines to circulate from 2030. And to change the environmental zones in force from low-emission to fossil-free areas.
First, however, the feasibility of the project must be put to the test by means of a feasibility study. By the end of the year, Copenhagen will review the existing infrastructure and ensure that it can handle increasing charging needs, especially for electric vehicles. After all, with the ban on combustion cars, the number of electric cars on the road is expected to increase significantly. At the same time, the capital will consider the social compatibility of the combustion ban in its feasibility study and possibly plan for exemptions for specific group based on this.
The official decision is expected next winter. But the broad support of all parties in the city council makes the chances seem high that the diesel ban plan will be implemented. Even Danish car associations show themselves ready for the traffic turnaround and do not deny the role that electromobility and climate-protecting traffic measures such as environmental zones and diesel bans will play in this.
Also not to be forgotten are the regulations of the environmental zones already active in Denmark. As always, all information is available on our website and in the Green Zones app.