Low-Emission Zones in European Countries

Low-emission zones are currently one of several tools which are in use for the improvement of air quality thanks to the limited entry of vehicles to European city centres. This article describes basic characteristics and parameters of low-emission zones in comparison with other types of used restrictions and explains the evaluation system of particularly environmental benefits and impacts. These theoretic assumptions are confronted with established low-emission zones in selected European urban areas; measured benefits and impacts of individual measures are evaluated and compared.