Danish congestion charge won't have great impact on emissions or air quality

The planned introduction of congestion charges in Copenhagen will not have a major impact on air quality according to Kåre Press-Kristensen, traffic expert at Denmark's Ecological Council (Det Økologiske Råd).
April 30, 2012 Read time: 1 min
The planned introduction of congestion charges in Copenhagen will not have a major impact on air quality according to Kåre Press-Kristensen, traffic expert at Denmark's 5352 Ecological Council (Det Økologiske Råd). Congestion charges will help reduce emissions but not by as much as they will reduce traffic, he says. The reason is that the charges will primarily keep private cars out of the city and these tend to be new, petrol driven vehicles with realtively low emissions. Diesel driven taxis, delivery trucks and buses will however, continue to operate in the city, spewing out nitrogen and dangerous particles. Press-Kristensen estimates emissions will fall 7-10% with congestion charges while traffic may be reduced by as much as 25%.Steen Solvang Jensen, senior researcher at the Department of Environmental Science at 5353 Aarhus University agrees with Press-Kristensen and says commercial traffic will continue despite a congestion charge.
Highway & Network Management

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • CEA conference 2018 – focusing on technology solutions
    May 2, 2018
    New technology and reduced machine emissions were amongst the key topics at the CEA conference in London - Mike Woof writes. Construction machine manufacturers are going to have to find new solutions if targets on emissions controls are going to be met. This is a clear viewpoint for the industry. But as the speakers at the recent CEA conference in London showed, there are differing opinions on how that will be achieved and what technical solutions will come to the fore. Duncan Riding, business development
    Read More
  • California delays emissions regulations
    February 23, 2012
    In the US state of California, legislators have now decided to delay tough regulations on emissions from construction equipment fleets. In California construction firms with large machine fleets were preparing themselves for having to re-engine older machines, buy new equipment or risk losing contracts.
    Read More
  • Taming traffic in urban areas
    August 15, 2019
    The success of the motor car as a form of transport is also proving its undoing. In urban areas around the world, passenger cars clog the roads and add to air pollution. Reducing urban traffic congestion is being seen as a priority in many cities. French capital Paris has had a number of car-free days, which has more recently been replicated in Scotland’s capital, Edinburgh. Looking ahead, the plan by Edinburgh’s local authority is to cut city centre traffic by 30% in 10 years. Congestion charging has bee
    Read More
  • Challenges and investment opportunities in East Africa transport infrastructure Sector
    November 21, 2014
    East Africa offers considerable potential for transport infrastructure expansion and investment - Shem Oirere reports Infrastructure, infrastructure and more infrastructure is what is needed to make East Africa the favoured destination and Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda have unveiled grand plans to enhance the infrastructure both nationally and regionally.” This is how market analyst Deloitte introduced its 2014/15 budget analysis for the four countries in July.
    Read More

Highlighted Content