For 2019, the average number of LEZ offences settled at 693 a day. Credit: Flickr/Flavio Ensiki
On 1 January, 2020, the Brussels’ Low-Emission Zone (LEZ) will once again up its rules, and begin banning Euro 3 diesel cars from driving in the region.
According to figures provided by the Belgian car federation, Febiac, there are still 226,291 Euro 3 diesel cars registered in Belgium. 73,833 of them are registered in Wallonia, and 16.129 are still driving around in Brussels, New Mobility reports.
Ahead of the change, Brussels has put up a series of signs to warn motorists of the new rules, which carry a €350 per day fine if not respected. People looking to buy a day pass can do so here.
“The Low-Emission Zone has had a positive effect on the number of very polluting cars driving on our roads, and thus on the quality of the air that Brussels citizens breathe in every day,” notes the spokesperson to the Brussels’ Environmental Minister, Alain Maron (Ecolo).
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that pollutant emissions from engines cause 75,000 premature deaths in Europe yearly. According to the latest report from the European Environment Agency: in 2015, Belgium recorded 7,400 premature deaths from exposure to particulate matter, 1,500 premature deaths from exposure to nitrogen dioxide and 220 premature deaths from ozone exposure.
For 2019, the average number of LEZ offences settled at 693 a day. In early October, that number dropped to 260 per day. On the whole year, 5.981 warnings were issued during the first three months, and Brussels sent 7.592 fines between January and September.
The next LEZ phase will start in 2022. It is currently estimated to apply to the roughly 750,000 Euro 4 diesel cars still registered in Belgium.
The Brussels Times
