Germany: (Also) these cities will abolish environmental zones

Since their introduction in 2008, low emission zones have been considered one of the most effective instruments in the fight against harmful traffic emissions. But more and more often, German cities and municipalities are planning to say goodbye to them. According to experts, there is no need to continue such measures, especially in areas where limit values have not been exceeded for a long time. Under current air conditions, the disadvantages for motorists are much greater than the advantages that environmental zones bring for air quality and the environment. This, at least, is the opinion of the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Transport, which had ordered an assessment of the active environmental zones and later decided in favour of their abolition. In March of this year, the environmental zone requirements were namely removed from the clean air plans of Karlsruhe, Pfinztal, Schramberg and Heidelberg, among others. Now more cities will also put an end to low-emission zones.  

From this May onwards, cars will be allowed to drive through even more areas in Baden-Württemberg without a green sticker. The Regional Council in Stuttgart has lifted the low emission zones in Wendlingen am Neckar (Esslingen district), Schwäbisch Gmünd (Ostalbkreis), Ilsfeld (Heilbronn district) and Urbach (Rems-Murr district). Here, too, measurements showed that the limit values for nitrogen dioxide and other pollutants had been significantly undercut for some time. The particulate matter limits have even been complied with state-wide since 2018. According to the expert report, the emission situation has improved so much that the environmental zone regulations that have been in force in the municipalities for years are no longer necessary. The southwestern federal state is certain that the abolition of these would not lead to increased pollutant levels again. Not least because there is talk of further measures. Alternative instruments within the framework of traffic management and more sustainable mobility, such as promoting greener means of transport and increasing the attractiveness of public transport, could replace the zone - and thus keep air pollution under control in other ways. 

Nevertheless, the decision of Wendlingen am Neckar and the other municipalities and cities from Baden-Württemberg is much criticised. Although the ban lifts are based on the improvements achieved in air quality and the reduction of air pollution levels, climate experts and environmentalists consider them a premature step. Especially when it is already clear that stricter bans and threshold values will come into force in the next few years as part of the combustion engine phase-out and the traffic turnaround. In order to comply with stricter threshold values, there is, in the final analysis, hardly any alternative as efficient as the creation of an environmental zone - for instance, thanks to the locking out of the most polluting vehicles from traffic. Until the vehicles on the roads will not significantly decrease in their negative impact on the environment, locking out the most polluting cars from traffic makes sense.  

In order to achieve the climate targets in 2023, as well as to make a meaningful contribution to environmental protection in general, it is crucial how the state and the rest of Germany will deal with the decarbonisation of transport in the coming months and years in the sense of making the mobility sector more sustainable. In this context, it is not enough to maintain climate protection measures such as low emission zones only if pollutant levels have to be kept below the acceptance threshold. Current legislation is demonstrably not enough to protect the population from the health consequences of air pollution - and increasingly, therefore, policy-makers should resort to measures aimed at reducing traffic emissions. After all, how effective can substitute measures really be? Is the abolition of environmental zones and diesel driving bans the right step, or are cities thus taking too high a risk of driving air pollution up again? Shouldn't at least the driving bans on vehicles in the larger weight categories remain in force in order to avoid particularly polluting exhaust gases? 

However, it is already clear that other cities will soon follow the example of Baden-Württemberg. In Lower Saxony, for example, Hanover is planning to abolish the green sticker requirement from the beginning of next year. Although the final decision has yet to be made, the view has already been formed in the authorities that the abolition of the low emission zone is actually long overdue in view of the current air situation. How many more cities will decide to abolish low emission zones over the next few years - despite controversial opinions and growing criticism from environmental experts - could soon become apparent.  

Not to be forgotten, however, are all the low emission zones still active in Germany - as well as in the rest of Europe. As always, all information is available on our website and in the Green-Zones app.