Pune will introduce a low emission zone (LEZ) in its most polluted zone, Shivajinagar in the central business district, and the move is significant as it is a first for an Indian city, which could serve as an example for other cities in the country.
The city is considering a ban or a significant reduction in the number of old and heavily polluting vehicles in an area that accounts for 7-10% of the city around Shivajinagar, Pune municipal commissioner Naval Kishor Ram said. The finer details are still being worked out and within two months, it will be launched, he said, adding that the police and the RTO would play a crucial role in the process.
The LEZ initiative is a result of the Pune municipal corporation’s efforts for three years with the help of ITDP India (Institute for Transportation and Development Policy) under the Maharashtra 2021 Electric Vehicle Policy. The policy dictates that LEZs should be implemented in six cities with the aim of lowering emissions to conform with the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP). Prior to the implementation, the following preparatory measures were carried out: An analysis of the legal status of LEZs and optimisation of public transport and pedestrian infrastructure.
A low emission zone (LEZ) is a designated area within urban limits where the most polluting vehicles are restricted, charged or prohibited from entering the zone in order to reduce the amount of harmful emissions that cause air pollution, including particulate matter (PM2.5) and nitrogen oxides (NOx).
LEZs were first introduced in the 1990s in Scandinavia. One of the first city-level restrictions on heavy diesel vehicles was in Stockholm in 1996. The concept then spread throughout Europe, especially to Germany, the Netherlands and Italy.
The most influential and most cited LEZ programme, however, was introduced in London during the time of its then-mayor Ken Livingstone in 2008. Later the model was extended to the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) scheme by the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, in 2019, which was one of the world’s most famous traffic restriction schemes to improve air quality.