The main goal of the 55 environmental zones already introduced in Germany is to protect the inhabitants of the cities and municipalities against the presence of fines particles in the air. Currently, traffic in the environmental zones is only allowed for vehicles bearing a green environmental badge (except in one zone), which means only for vehicles whose criteria meet the prescription of the norm EURO 4 or superior. In this way, German environmental zones are called green environmental zones.

However, an extension of the restriction’s measures shall also consider in the future the emissions of nitrogen oxides. The emissions of nitrogen oxides, mostly produced by diesel vehicles, are as a matter of fact increasing in such a way that the limits fixed by the European Union are constantly exceeded. This could lead to the introduction of blue environmental zones and a blue environmental badge in Germany. It is also possible that cities decide to introduce other traffic restrictions which could for example depend on the EURO norms of diesel vehicles.

The traffic restrictions for diesel vehicles, which will be introduced from the year 2018 in some German cities refer to diesel-restrictions-zones or blue environmental zones which are still to be defined. Diesel vehicles could be then banned permanently or temporary from these zones depending on their emissions rates of nitrogen oxides.

So that the European traffic of busses, transport or tourists keeps an overview in which zone it is allowed to drive depending on the type of fuel, on the vignette category, on the zone and on the day, that in permanent green environmental zones or in temporary diesel-restrictions-zones, the use of the Green-Zones App is absolutely essential.