Associated European Motorists calls for two-year moratorium in Madrid ZBE to avoid eviction of 1.2 million cars

As of January 1, just over 1.2 million vehicles will no longer be able to access and circulate on the urban public highway of Madrid ZBE. To avoid the expulsion of these motorists, the Associated European Motorists (AEA) organization – which is the one that makes the numerical estimate – has asked the Mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martinez-Almeidawhich approves a moratorium of at least two years on the ban on the circulation in these areas of cars that do not have an environmental label. They understand that the measure, included in the Ordinance on Sustainable Mobility, will mean that “two out of three vehicles in the Madrid fleet will not be able to circulate in the capital.”

The AEA is concerned about “the magnitude of the problem that will be faced by hundreds of thousands of Madrid residents”. These are, they point out, vehicles that “comply with emissions regulations and pay vehicle tax” – they estimate that this generates around 32 million euros. As of January 1, these cars will no longer be able to circulate or park in the centre of the capital, under penalty of 200 euros.

The AEA understands that “when approving the ordinance, the true economic and social dimension of the measure was not taken into account”: these are cars with a value “in excess of 5.2 billion euros” and will represent a reduction of 32 million euros in tax revenue.

In addition to the moratorium, the AEA asks Martínez-Almeida to urgently approve the tax exemption for vehicles registered in the vehicle tax register that are not authorized to circulate on urban public roads in the Madrid ZBE territorial area. And to prevent those who mistakenly enter the prohibited area from being fined, they ask “that access signage be strengthened and improved.”