German cities officially allowed to ban old diesel cars

ABU DHABI: In a 30-page statement from Friday, the previous week, an administrative court in Germany directed all the cities across the nation to immediately ban old diesel car, excluding the ones that satisfy Euro 6 emission standards. The initiative has been taken up as an attempt to bring air pollution levels in line with European Union rules.

Older combustion engines might now go somewhat missing from the city streets of Germany and more focus would be made on improvising the exhaust gas cleaning system. Many of the cities, like Munich, Hamburg, and Stuttgart, are known to have exceeded EU restrictions on nitrogen oxide (NOx), which causes respiratory issues and other health hazards.

Germany is the home of some of the world’s most recognized and renowned automakers. The court-ruling, undoubtedly, will put a lot of stress over these automakers and impact the future of the auto industry. The court’s order is being viewed as an embarrassment for the Chancellor Angela Merkel's government and it is being criticized heavily for its close ties with the industry.

In addition to this, the country is also considering strategies to make public transport free in cities facing poor air quality issues. The ban was imposed by regional courts in Duesseldorf and Stuttgart over poor air quality. On this, Germany's highest federal administrative court is yet to give a verdict.

Cars built on Euro-6 emission standard technology has been exempted. However, it should be remembered that out of the 15 million diesel cars hitting the roads in German, only 2.7 million have the Euro-6 technology. As per the research company, Evercore ISI, the ruling could cost the auto industry around $17 billion for arranging necessary software and hardware upgradations in the older diesel cars.

The phased implementation of the ban on older diesel cars is believed to commence from bigger cities, with older Euro 4 diesel cars being banned first followed by Euro 5 ones. On Wednesday, Hamburg, Germany's second largest city, confirmed that it has started enforcing bans on old diesel cars in the city and it might start taking full effect by the end of May.