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Date Published: 08/02/2023

Cars will not require environmental stickers for Low Emission Zones in Cartagena

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Cartagena City Council has also decided not to prohibit any vehicles in its Low Emission Zones

Cars will not require environmental stickers for Low Emission Zones in Cartagena

Cartagena’s City Councillor for Sustainability, Cristina Mora, has confirmed that vehicles in Cartagena will absolutely not require DGT environmental labels once the city implements its new Low Emission Zones (ZBE), debunking the “totally unfounded” claims that have been doing the rounds on social media.

Furthermore, the councillor reiterated her message from last month: Cartagena is committed to establishing measures to promote public transport and reduce pollution, but no area of the city will be completely off-limits to certain vehicles even when the Low Emission Zones come into play.

“Drivers will have the same freedom as before the new ordinance,” she assured. “Therefore they have to ignore the hoaxes on social networks that have only one objective, to harm Cartagena.”

There are four environmental labels issued by the DGT that categorise vehicles from the least polluting to the most. Many cities with more than 50,000 inhabitants are already requesting that drivers display the stickers in their windscreens and prohibit vehicles not entitled to an environmental label in certain city centre streets during days of high pollution.

However, the traffic authorities have been clear from the start that municipalities must design their own rules to best suit their needs and in Cartagena, it will not be necessary for any vehicles to display a sticker.

Since much of central Cartagena is pedestrianised already, the Council considers that the city doesn’t actually have a big pollution problem, so rather than prohibiting drivers of certain cars they are instead pushing sustainable mobility alternatives to achieve the objective of reducing environmental and noise pollution.

Cartagena will have two Low Emission Zones. The first is in the Casco Histórico Old Town, which includes the perimeter created by Calle Real, Calle Carlos III, Calle Capitanes Ripoll, Avenida Trovero Marín, Cuesta del Batel and Paseo Alfonso XII. Within this perimeter, vehicle access will be limited to homes and garages, and the transport of goods for businesses on these streets.

The second ZBE will be the Ensanche, delimited by the perimeter formed by Paseo de Alfonso XIII, La Alameda de San Antón, Avenida Reina Victoria and Calle Juan de la Cosa. Traffic calming will be promoted in this area through the creation of superblocks that discourage traffic in central areas to reduce pollution and noise for residents.

The ZBE will be closely monitored with capacity, sound and pollution measurement systems.

Image: Ayuntamiento de Cartagena

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