Madrid Low Emissions Zone will come into force outside the M-30 starting Monday, January 1, thus covering the entire municipal area, until now it was limited exclusively to M-30 and central almond.
From that moment on, the most polluting passenger cars that are not registered in Madrid before January 1, 2022 or that do not pay the Mechanical Traction Vehicle Tax (IVTM) will have restricted access and circulation throughout the capital.
This measure affects only passenger vehicles with environmental classification A -diesel registered before 2006 or gasoline before 2000- of the categories by use criterion 00 (unspecified), 02 (family) and 33 (off-road). It does not affect goods vehicles or motorcycles without a label.
In accordance with the provisions of article 242 of the Sustainable Mobility Ordinance (WHO), a notice period will be established which, on this occasion, will extend until June 30. The objective of this phase is to inform and warn citizens who are prohibited from accessing and circulating so that they correct this practice and are not penalized for traveling outside the M-30.
However, it is remembered that the cameras that control the M-30 and its interior will end their warning period on January 14. Therefore, any vehicle detected by them will be sanctioned starting January 15.
All owners of passenger cars that violate the regulations in force for Madrid ZBE outside the M-30 during the notice period - from 00:00 on Monday, January 1, 2024 until 23:59 on June 30 2024-- and are intercepted by the cameras, they will receive an informative communication. However, they may be sanctioned if they are detained by an agent of the authority.
Access not permitted to Madrid ZBE, as with the Low Emission Zones of Special Protection Central District and Plaza Elíptica, represented until March 20, 2022 a minor traffic violation in accordance with the provisions of articles 18 and 75. c) and could be fined 90 euros (45 euros if it is for prompt payment), in accordance with articles 80.1 and 81 of the Law on Traffic, Circulation of Motor Vehicles and Road Safety.
Due to the modification of the aforementioned law by the central government, since March 21, 2022, it has been punished as a serious traffic violation, entailing a fine of 200 euros, in accordance with the provisions of articles 18, 76.z3 and 80.1, (100 euros if it is for prompt payment).
Madrid ZBE was launched in January 2022 under the framework of the Madrid 360 Sustainability Strategy to reduce nitrogen oxides in the city. The Madrid City Council has highlighted that this action has contributed to improving air quality in the capital "notably", allowing the city to comply with the European air quality directive for the first time in 2022. "This achievement will be achieved again in 2023 with nitrogen dioxide records even lower than the previous year," he emphasizes.
With the implementation of Madrid ZBE, the traffic of vehicles without environmental marking (A) inside the M-30 has decreased to represent 2.3% of the total inside the city (73,826 of the 3,246,971 transits detected daily on average). In number, this represents approximately 2,000 sanctionable vehicles per day, since on average a vehicle is detected by approximately three cameras.
The Madrid City Council's forecast is that with the new Madrid ZBE restriction, the number of vehicles that will be sanctioned additionally per day in the notice period will rise to 2,700, that is, 700 more per day. However, it is expected that there will be a correction of behavior during the six months in the warning phase of 50%, as has occurred with the other ZBEs.
The automated control of Madrid ZBE will be carried out with the 257 cameras that, for now, make up the entire traffic control system for the interior of the M-30 and the road itself. In a few days the implementation of the remaining 207 cameras to monitor the exterior of the M-30 will be completed.
The acquisition and installation of the cameras and the rest of the system elements have been financed by the European Union through Next Generation EU funds. There has been a subsidy of 5.7 million euros from the Recovery and Resilience Plan to help municipalities for the implementation of low-emission zones.
The objective of this community aid is to achieve the Green Deal so that Europe is the first climate-neutral continent, thus becoming a modern and efficient economy in the use of resources. The financing has been obtained through the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda.
In total, 464 surveillance devices will ensure compliance with Madrid ZBE, a figure to which we must add the 37 'photored' devices that are distributed throughout the city.
