Stockholm Set to Ban Diesel and Gas Vehicles from City Center in 2025

• Sweden’s capital city, Stockholm, is set to ban fossil-fuel-burning vehicles from its city center, covering about 20 city blocks, being the end of next year.

• Euro 6 plug-in “hybrid heavy” vehicles will be exempted to allow for delivery vans.

• The move is driven less by concerns over congestion as air pollution.

Stockholm will ban gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles from about 44 acres of its central finance and main shopping area beginning December 31, 2024.

Cars and trucks will not be allowed in the area covering 20 city blocks unless they are electric-powered or are Euro 6 plug-in “hybrid heavy” vehicles, the latter making an allowance for delivery vans. Ambulances and emergency police vehicles will be exempt.

The zone will be in effect 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and violators are subject to a traffic offense which can result in a fine of SEK 1,000 ($91.19 USD as of Oct. 12) the city says in a press release.

“It is more ‘ultra’ than the ultra-low emission zone of London,” said Lars Strömgren, vice mayor for Stockholm’s Transport and Urban Environment, in the release.

Stockholm plans to expand its low-emission zone in the first half of 2025. The scope of the expansion will be investigated in 2024.

Stromgren is a representative of the Green Party, which leads the city of Stockholm in a coalition with the Social Democrats and the Left Party.

London launched its congestion pricing law in 2003. Stockholm introduced congestion pricing in 2007 and it was updated most recently updated in 2020. New York City plans to impose a congestion fee on parts of Manhattan next spring, but New Jersey Gov. Philip Murphy last August filed a lawsuit to fight it on behalf of constituents who commute there.

Meanwhile, Paris plans to ban all non-essential traffic from the center of the city in time for the 2024 Olympics next summer, according to Bloomberg City Lab.

Air pollution is a long-standing problem in Stockholm, the release notes, and causes reduced lung function for children living near the targeted area from as early as six months of age, as well as premature deaths among the elderly.

“We have chosen an area where large numbers of cyclists and pedestrians are exposed to unhealthy air on a daily basis,” Stromgren said in the statement. “It is also a part of the city that is home to forward-thinking companies that are keen to lead the transition to a more sustainable future.”

Congestion appears to be less an issue for Stockholm. It is 160th most-congested, according to the 2022 Tom Tom Traffic Index of 390 world cities. Average travel time per 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) was 15 minutes, 20 seconds, which is 10 seconds quicker than in 2021. Stockholm is less congested than number-157 Seattle and more congested than number 162-Philadelphia. Rush-hour speeds averaged just under 20 mph.

Despite 20 years of congestion pricing, London remained first, with an average travel time per 10 kilometers of 36 minutes, 20 seconds, which is 1-minute, 50-seconds longer than in ’21. Average rush hour speed was under 9 mph.