Ух, еве одвај најдов ...Circulation restrictions in "environmental zones"
Several German cities have introduced restrictions on the circulation of vehicles, in order to reduce the levels of emission of fine particulates in some areas. The areas where restrictions apply are indicated by signs showing coloured vignettes ("Plakette") - green, yellow or red. To enter these areas, drivers have to stick a vignette on their vehicle windscreen. This can be obtained from technical inspection centres or approved garages. According to the revised "Kennzeichenverordnung" the owner of the vehicle (German or foreign) simply needs to present the registration certificate of the vehicle and pay a fee of 5 to 10 EUR. The colour of the vignette issued depends on the type of engine and the Euro emissions category of the vehicle.
Towns with restrictions:
Augsbourg
Hannover
Neuss
Berlin
Heidelberg
Oberhausen
Bochum
Heilbronn
Osnabruck
Bonn
Herrenberg
Pfinztal
Bottrop
Ilsfeld
Pforzheim
Bremen
Karlsruhe
Pleidelsheim
Cologne
Leonberg
Recklinghausen
Dortmund
Ludwigsburg
Reutlingen
Duisburg
Mannheim
Schwäbisch Gmünd
Düsseldorf
Mühlacker
Stuttgart
Essen
Mühlheim-an-der-Ruhr
Tübingen
Frankfurt-am-Main
Munich
Ulm
Freiburg
Münster
Wuppertal
Gelsenkirchen
Neu-Ulm
For maps and detailed information, please see
http://www.adac.de/umweltzonenhttp://www.umweltbundesamt.de/umweltzonenand the attached document from AvD (link below).
Clubs can order the vignette for their members from the ADAC office in Cologne . For details of the procedure, please contact
Bernd Kuckertz bernd.kuckertz@nrh.adac.de
Heinz-Gerd Lehmann heinz-gerd.lehmann@nrh.adac.de
How to enter an Environmental Zone
in Germany
► What is an environmental zone?
From 1st January 2008, restrictions on the circulation of vehicles are introduced in several
German cities in order to reduce the levels of emission of fine particulates in these areas. To
enter an area, drivers will have to stick a vignette ("Feinstaubplakette") on the windscreen of
their vehicle. Automobiles with particularly high emission levels can not obtain a vignette and
have to stay outside.
● for more details, please see
www.avd.de/feinstaub► Where are environmental zones?
Up to now, only a few larger towns implemented environmental zones - e.g. Hannover , Köln,
Berlin - but more cities have already announced the introduction. Environmental zones
basically include the city centre. In any case the zonal area where restrictions apply must be
clearly indicated by traffic signs showing the colour of the vignette - green, yellow or red -
which entitle to drive in the colour-related sector.
● for maps or detailed information, please see
http://www.umweltbundesamt.de/umweltzonen► Who is affected by environmental zones?
Anyone who wants to drive a motor vehicle into the environmental zone has to have a
vignette on the windscreen. This means that also driver of foreign registered vehicles have to
display a vignette.
► General Exemptions from the restrictions
According to law the following vehicles do not need a vignette:
- Two and three wheeled motor vehicles incl. “Quads”
- Motor vehicles driven by or carrying persons with serious mobility impairments, helpless or
blind persons who have a severe disablement document marked with disability codes “aG”,
“H” or “Bl”
- Vintage cars older than 30 years with a “H” in the registration number or with a red number
plate (prefix 07) for historical vehicles.
More exemptions for particular vehicles (e.g. ambulances, police or fire brigades) are
provided in Annex 3 to § 2 paragraph 3 of the “Kennzeichenverordnung”. Besides these
nation-wide provisions, cities define their own localized exemptions.
● for exemptions according to Kennzeichenverordnung, please see
http://www.bundesrecht.juris.de/bimschv_35► What are the consequences?
Offences will be punished by a 40,- Euros fine and a penalty point on the driving licence.
status quo: 01/2008 ● AvD e.V.
2
► How to get a vignette?
Whether the vehicle owner gets a vignette or not depends on the type of engine and the
emission level of the vehicle. If the foreign vehicle registration documents do not provide the
emission standard and no other evidence can be presented (also for retrofit diesel particulate
filter), the classification of foreign vehicles is based on the year when the vehicle was first
registered (see list below).
Emission level Pollutant
class
Date of first
registration
Passenger car
Date of first
registration
Heavy goods vehicle
Vignette
Diesel Car
Euro 1 or elder 1 Before 01.01.1997 Before 01.10.1996 None
Euro 2 2 From 01.01.1997 to
31.12.2000
From 01.10.1996 to
30.09.2001
Red
Euro 3 3 From 01.01.2001 to
31.12.2005
From 01.10.2001 to
30.09.2006
Yellow
Euro 4 4 From 01.01.2006 From 01.10.2006 Green
Petrol Car
Before Euro 1
(without controlled catalytic
converter /“G-Kat”)
1 Before 01.01.1993 None
Euro 1 and better 4 From 01.01.1993 Green
no responsibility is taken for the correctness of this information
Non combustion engine vehicles (e.g. electric motor, fuel cell) obtain a green vignette
(emission level 4). The green, yellow or red vignette entitles to enter the colour-related sector
of any environmental zone in Germany .
● for more details, please see
www.avd.de/feinstaubVignettes are available in Germany for a fee of 5,- (-10,-) Euro. They are issued directly by
the local vehicle registration authorities, technical inspection centres such as DEKRA, TÜV,
GTÜ and approved garages.
The owner of a foreign registered vehicle can apply for a vignette directly on site as well as
order a vignette by email (A handling time must be taken in account!) The vehicle registration
authority of Berlin offers the ordering service at kfz-zulassung@labo.verwalt-berlin.de. A
scanned copy of the vehicle registration and / or any official document showing the date of
first registration and the type of the vehicle (diesel/petrol, passenger car/ HGV) has to be
attached to the email. A written application by mail is possible to Kfz-Zulassungsstelle, Max-
Glomsda-Str. 4, 51105 Köln. Besides the copies of the relevant documents the 5 Euros fee
must be enclosed in cash or as check for deposit only. The TÜV Nord provides a special
service for vehicle registered in the Netherlands under
http://www.tuevnord.
nl/Keuringen/Umweltplakette.htm. Some hotels offer assistance in obtaining the vignette
for foreign visitors!
● for detailed information about present environmental zones, please see
http://www.stadt-koeln.de/bol/umwelt/feinstaub/umweltzonen/index.htmlhttp://www.berlin.de/sen/umwelt/luftqualitaet/de/luftreinhalteplan/umweltzone_aktuelles.shtmlhttp://www.hannover.de/de/umwelt_bauen/umwelt/lulaestr/luft/luft_rein/umw_zone/index.html
