A large-area traffic prohibition zone for diesel vehicles in Frankfurt is for now off the table. This is clear from the judgment of the Hessischer Verwaltungsgerichtshof (VGH) today in Kassel. The blocking of individual road sections is still possible with the judgment (9 A 2691/18).
Last year, the state of Hesse and the city of Frankfurt appealed to the VGH against a ruling by the administrative court in Wiesbaden. In the first instance, following a complaint by Deutsche Umwelthilfe, this provided for a traffic prohibition zone which would have extended to the area of the current environmental zone in Frankfurt. From February 2019, the driving ban for diesel should apply up to the pollutant class Euro 4, from September this year also for the class Euro 5. This would include cars that are only a few years old.
Frankfurt has time until the end of 2020
The VGH allowed the appeal because of "serious doubts about its correctness" at that time and confirmed today's verdict with his doubts in the first instance judgment. This must now be changed accordingly. A driving ban in the entire environmental zone of the Main metropolis is therefore disproportionate.
Nevertheless, the city of Frankfurt must now examine what effect smaller traffic prohibition zones or the blocking of individual routes have on the nitrogen dioxide emissions. The court had come to the conclusion that the previously planned measures were not suitable to comply with the limit values, said the Chair judge. The Court obliged the country to update the clean air plan for Frankfurt at the latest next year.
If the pollution levels in Frankfurt continue to be above the limit of 40 micrograms per cubic meter of air by the end of 2020, the state of Hesse would then still have to issue driving bans on individual road sections.
Other DUH lawsuits pending
Frankfurt had already taken steps for better air. Recently, for example, the fees for inner-city parking have risen sharply - to keep cars away. In addition, additional bus lanes in the inner city area to be set up and the bike paths to be expanded, partly at the expense of car traffic.
Umwelthilfe filed lawsuits in more than 30 cities nationwide for excessive air pollution. Also Hessian municipalities were affected: The nationally far only driving restrictions apply on two streets in Darmstadt. Wiesbaden was able to avert this by promising the city a million-strong package of measures for cleaner air. In the case of Limburg and Offenbach are still lawsuits that have not yet been decided.
