If the Canary Islands follows in the footsteps of Catalonia where, by 2028, circulation restrictions will be implemented for cars with class ‘B’ environmental stickers in the Low Emission Zones (Zonas de Bajas Emisiones), more than 269,000 vehicles (22%) would be affected by the new limitations, according to used car portal AutoScout24, based on data from the DGT.
This means that, if the new restrictions on cars with ‘B’ stickers were added to the existing circulation limitations for those without an environmental badge in the Canary Islands, almost half of the 1.2 million cars on our roads wouldn’t be able to circulate in the Low Emission Zones.
To comply with the laws for emissions and Climate Change, this regulation would have to be implemented in nine areas in the Canary Islands, affecting more than one million people, or 54% of the island’s population as follows:
Santa Cruz (Tenerife)
Las Palmas (Gran Canaria)
Arrecife (Lanzarote)
La Laguna (Tenerife)
Telde (Gran Canaria)
Arona (Tenerife)
Granadilla de Abona (Tenerife)
Santa Lucía de Tirajana (Gran Canaria)
San Bartolomé de Tirajana (Gran Canaria)
Nationwide, the Low Emission Zones will affect 149 Spanish municipalities where more than 25 million people live, which is 53% of the inhabitants of our country (INE). Currently, and according to the restrictions already known for cars without a badge and the upcoming limitations for those with a B sticker, in the medium term, 59% of the total number of cars in Spain would have restricted circulation in low-emission areas.
According to Ignacio Rojí, spokesperson for AutoScout24, "With the announced new restrictions and according to current data, six out of ten cars in our country will have circulation limitations in large cities, which means a Spain with two 'emissions'.”
“On the one hand, overcrowded cities with electric vehicles that will be able to circulate freely, and on the other hand, less populated cities and rural areas where the most polluting vehicles will be able to circulate without any veto," he said.
