By the end of 2024, Sweden’s capital, Stockholm, will ban all cars that run exclusively on gasoline or diesel fuel in certain central parts of the city. The announced reason for the ban is to improve air quality in the city, and the ban will encompass 20 blocks of Stockholm’s central city, including its finance and main shopping districts.
As of December 31 of next year, the only personal vehicles allowed in the new Environmental Zone Class 3 will be electric powered. Once initiated, the city plans to expand the no gas/no diesel zone further, with a decision on how much further expected in the middle of 2025.
Thus far, motorcycles and mopeds are not included in the ban. Hybrid vehicles that meet the Euro 6 emission standards will also be allowed. Other exceptions to the ban will be for ambulances or where a driver or passenger has a documented disability.
“Poor air quality damages the lungs of infants and causes the elderly to die prematurely. We need to eliminate the harmful exhaust gasses from petrol and diesel cars. That’s why we are introducing the most ambitious low-emission zone to date,” said Lars Strömgren, vice mayor for transport and urban environment of the City of Stockholm.
A number of European cities, including Paris, Athens, and Madrid, have already banned diesel cars, but Stockholm’s new ban goes further. In addition to banning gasoline-powered vehicles, the ban will be in effect 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
“Many cities have implemented low-emission zones where high-emission cars are allowed to drive if they pay a charge,” Strömgren noted. “Stockholm’s model is more far-reaching. Petrol and diesel cars are prohibited, period. It is more ‘ultra’ than the ultra-low emission zone of London.”
“We have chosen an area where large numbers of cyclists and pedestrians are exposed to unhealthy air on a daily basis. It is also a part of the city that is home to forward-thinking companies that are keen to lead the transition to a more sustainable future,” Strömgren added.
Fines for running afoul of Stockholm’s gas/diesel ban could be steep, with a first offense costing the perpetrator SEK 1,000 (approximately $92).
While climate change was not specifically mentioned as a reason for the ban, Stockholm is essentially run by Sweden’s Green Party along with a coalition of other left-wing parties. The Swedish Greens have said that they hope the Stockholm ban will quicken the nation’s switch to all-electric vehicles.
Sweden’s climate goals include a long term goal of net-zero emissions by 2045. Along the way, the nation looks to have emissions 63-percent lower than 1990 levels by 2030, and 75-percent lower than 1990 levels by 2040.
Some in Sweden’s transportation sector say that the new plan is moving too fast in their push to decarbonize.
“Since 2010, we have reduced emissions by 34 percent. But the Green party and their colleagues in the city of Stockholm are now in far too much of a hurry,” said Tina Thorsell, director of social policy at the Swedish Confederation of Transport Enterprises.
According to Thorsell, the nation’s electric infrastructure is not yet up to meet the needs of an all-electric vehicle fleet.
“In short, there is a strong pressure for transformation in the industry,” Thorsell said. “What we need is … continued investments in electricity infrastructure.”
Even Sweden’s Green Party realizes that this is a big ask of the citizenry with regard to the made-up crisis of climate change. This is why they’re linking the ban to supposed air quality issues and dying infants instead of climate change.
