Question by MEP Ivo Belet (PPE)

To improve air quality in cities, more than 225 low-emission zones have been established in 14 EU Member States, banning the most-polluting vehicles from entry.

The approach and the associated standards and penalties vary greatly from city to city, from region to region and from Member State to Member State. There is now a patchwork of more than 200 different vignettes, emission standards and monitoring models. This inevitably creates confusion among drivers, which is even worse in border regions.

In its reply to Question E-001693/2017, the Commission refers to a study that has been commissioned concerning the regulation of access to cities for vehicles and the enforcement of the access regimes in Europe. The results were expected in the summer of 2017.

What results has the study on the regulation of vehicle access to cities produced, and what action does the Commission intend to take in the light of them?

Does the Commission agree that an initiative should be taken to streamline all of these different models of emission zones, and if so, does the Commission intend to take action on the matter in the short term?

In the Commission’s opinion, what system, what method of calculation, is the most effective, consumer-friendly and future-proof, and ought without further ado to be recommended as ‘best practice’?

Answer given by Ms Bulc on behalf of the Commission (21.02.2018)

The study referred to by the Honourable Member was published in September 2017. It provides recommendations for local authorities and illustrates that there are different ways in which low emission zones can be enforced, e.g. through modern information technologies.

A fully harmonised European approach to Urban Vehicle Access Regulation schemes (UVARs) has not been considered appropriate because it is crucial that the design and implementation of such schemes can be tailored to the specific situation in each urban area.

This is in line with the subsidiarity principle which aims to ensure that decisions are taken as closely as possible to the citizen and requires that action at EU level is more effective and justified in light of the possibilities available at national, regional or local level. Moreover, national UVARs should respect the basic principles of the Treaties (e.g. the internal market and the freedom of movement) and have to be proportional and non-discriminatory.

The Commission is aware of the concerns in this respect and considers that adequate information to travellers regarding UVARs is of primary importance in that context. An online platform provides all information required in multiple languages. Furthermore, the implementation of the Commission Delegated Regulation with regard to the provision of EU-wide real-time traffic information services will facilitate the dissemination of information related to traffic restrictions based on harmonised data.

The Commission is engaging with stakeholders and with national and local authorities to foster consistency and information on UVARs and is supporting cities in the provision of information/data. During 2018 the Commission will consider further options on UVARs.