As part of the gradual implementation of the Low Emissions Zone (LEZ), the driving of diesel vehicles older than 11 years (Euro 4 standard) will be banned in Brussels from January 1, 2022.

The measure, aimed at reducing air pollution, concerns cars, vans, buses and minibuses that will no longer be able to circulate within the LEZ, which covers Brussels’ 19 municipalities. About 76,500 vehicles registered in Belgium are affected.

According to the Brussels Environment, the Environment and Energy Administration in the Brussels-Capital Region, these are the latest generation of diesel vehicles that should not be equipped with particulate filters. Therefore they pollute more and emit large amounts of fine particles.

However, the body provides a three-month transition period until April 1, 2022, from which date violators will receive a 350-euro fine.

According to a study by the Bruxelles Environnement, which evaluated 130,000 different vehicles in real conditions in the capital, Euro 4 diesel cars were responsible for almost half of the particulate emissions measured at the exhaust and a quarter of the emissions of nitrogen oxides. Vehicles tested represented 12% of the fleet.

The European Environment Agency estimates that air pollution causes about 9,000 premature deaths each year in Belgium, including 1,000 in Brussels, as well as cardiovascular or respiratory diseases.