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.
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.
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.
A new regulation for the sale of used cars could mean that they have to be scrapped. An EU directive is planned that will classify used cars with an exhaust emission class below Euro 5 as scrap in the future. This will make it increasingly difficult or impossible to sell them in poorer countries.
In Austria there are seven environmental zones and one noise zone. In Burgenland, Lower and Upper Austria, Styria and Vienna, the environmental zone applies to trucks only, and to all types. Whether vans, whether lorries under or over 3.5 tonnes: All truck classes, i.e. N1, N2, N3, are affected by the driving ban, at least those that do not meet Euro standard 3.
He wanted to be so climate-friendly: But the bonus that Federal Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer promised and paid out for the purchase of a new truck has no real positive effect on the climate. Critics complain that this money could have been better invested in climate protection.
There are four environmental zones in Denmark. These are located in the capital Copenhagen, as well as in Aalborg, Aarhus and Odense. All these low emission zones are permanently valid and affect diesel buses, vans and trucks, i.e. vehicles of classes M2 and M3 as well as N1, N2 and N3. While until the middle of last year there were still environmental badges with which the vehicles had to be marked, there is now registration and electronic controls.
The truck manufacturers are stepping up the pace in the changeover to alternative drive systems. They are much more ambitious than the politicians. They are now hoping for incentives from the government so that customers will actually follow suit.
